


Love In Ikea

by kai_blxck



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Bi Hermione (Mentioned), Communication, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, HP Fluff Fest 2020, Harry Has Secrets, Home Improvement, IKEA, IKEA Furniture, Interior Decorating, Light Angst, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mind Healer, Muggle Draco Malfoy, Muggle/Wizard Relations, Original Character(s), Past Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Past Infidelity, Past Relationship(s), Some Humor, Therapy, Wizard Harry Potter, is key, slightly graphic description of panic episode, some very fluffy scenes, this can probably be an advertisement for Ikea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:14:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26367781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kai_blxck/pseuds/kai_blxck
Summary: In all the trips Harry had made to Ikea, Harry never expected to bump into thelove of his life?Draco never thought Wizards could exist but here he is, falling in love with one.A story in which Harry is only able to make something of his new home after he meets Draco.
Relationships: (Past) Draco Malfoy/Original Male Character(s), Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 8
Kudos: 55
Collections: HP Fluff Fest 2020





	1. Bloom

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first, longest and thought-out fic. I did way more with this prompt than I thought I would (hence the giant word count and build up only to Harry decorating his new home) and I want to thank @Leah and @Val for being my beta's, I genuinely wouldn't have fixed so many errors and plot holes were it not for y'all. thank you so much for sticking through this even with your busy schedules. I appreciate so darn much. and thank you @Luna for being a cheerleader from the first few thousand words itself, but more for just being someone so lovely to chat with and rant with about fest work and for going through so many cake-baking analogies. @Fay for cheering me on in the last few days of this fic and just being a lovely sprint partner at the oddest of hours (and for helping me with some of the best last bits and the ENDING), all that positive energy was so lovely to have when I had as many doubts about this as I did. all of y'all deserve so many of these -> <3 <3 <3
> 
> I NEVER thought I'd write these many words for a fic, I've given up on my works so many times but I'm so glad I stuck it out with this one. To the moderators, thank you for letting me have so many extensions, I am so grateful to have such an understanding team as moderators for my first full-fledged fest. 
> 
> One question I never thought I'd ask myself so many times during this fic has been 'how do I write something I've never been a part of?' be that a romantic relationship or the things you do in one. But I hope that I did it some justice and I hope you all love this fic as much as I loved writing and brain-storming for it. any form of love for this fic would be greatly appreciated <3 <3

Lace curtains did very little to block the sunlight streaming onto the bed, making Harry squint. Dark blue sheets splayed out and over the edges of the four-poster, a clear indication of some - or perhaps a lot of -rustling had taken place. Charcoal grey covers covered the young men, but just barely, as two different legs poked out the blankets. As the sun made itself aware that it was there to stay Harry gave up on trying to cover his eyes from the true enemy of his day: mornings. Instead, he chose to turn his face to the pale man sleeping soundly beside him. Harry found himself enamoured by the fellow, mildly envious of his ability to be in such deep sleep that the sun didn’t even make him turn his head.

A smile touched his lips as he remembered the events the night had presented them with. Harry couldn’t remember the last time someone left such an impression in his mind; getting rid of the memory would do more harm than good.

Draco’s hair looked so smooth. It took too much willpower to not run his hands through it so he gave in, making his smile grow wider. Harry felt himself smile in a way that could only be compared to the one of a child at the sight of candy. Not that Harry wanted to lick Draco all over, then again, he would if asked. In a heartbeat. Probably.

Sadly, the appreciation of Draco’s hair only lasted a few seconds before he woke up and smirked at the swift removal of Harry’s hand from his head, practically alarmed at the sudden movement of Draco.

“Been awake the whole time you know. The Edward Cullen staring is very effective.”

“Oh is it? If either of us had to be Edward it would surely be you, you’ve got the skin colour, the intense eyes. All you’ve got to change is the hair. I could make you an appointment for a hair dye with my friend for sure.”

“I take that as a compliment, you know, but you will not bring any hair colour _near_ my hair.” Draco scrambled a little farther from Harry as he said this, consciously patting his blond locks.

“Eh, we’ll see about that.” Harry’s playful smirk appeared to do nothing to reassure Draco and yet he seemed unable to help himself from attempting to kiss it off Harry’s face.

“Oh! _Edward_ ,” Harry sighed as Draco eagerly kissed him. He soon regretted it though as Draco pushed him off the bed and all Harry could do was continue laughing.

“A proper idiot you are, you know that?”

“I’m sorry I don’t think our conversation covered that last night, thank you for clarifying. I’ll add it to my resume,” Harry expressed, with a cheeky wink at the end of it.

“And just for that, you get to make the bed. See if you can fit those disastrous sheets without any wrinkles.”

~~~

Breakfast was usually made for one but since Draco had a guest he decided he could whip up something slightly impressive. He didn’t get to show off his talents often since not many people visited him, apart from his mum and best friend. Draco wasn’t even doing it for the praise or because he immensely liked this man - that was only five percent of it. The least he could do for Harry, whose company was refreshing from the men he usually stumbled upon that were looking for a casual one night stand, was cook something small and nice.

Music played in the background as Draco fiddled with the sugar and flour, stirring the batter with a metal whisk to the tune of the music, swinging his hips absentmindedly. Soft lyrics about love accompanied by a deep rhythm of synchronised drums floated through the kitchen as the shower turned on across the apartment. No one had dared to spend the night before, much less shower the next day in Draco’s house, but that was also because they were driven away by some crazy story Draco would tell them after they’d reached completion. Harry seemed to have been a first in many ways; most importantly, his first non-sexual one night stand.

Subconsciously, or perhaps even more telling, consciously, Draco found himself wanting to tell Harry whatever he could about himself. Maybe Harry had put some kind of spell on him as he'd never even thought to share this much with his friends and he had known them for years. It almost felt like Harry was someone who would be able to understand any and every layer Draco gave of himself.

Draco loved taking his time with food, appreciating it and making sure every part of the process was completed to perfection, from keeping the eggs out for exactly five minutes so that they weren’t too cold to fly into a hot pan, remembering to salt the mushrooms right before he was done with them so they were able to cook to crispy perfection without the moisture seeping out. This meticulousness left Draco with wonderful food but also countless missed calls and texts, usually from Pansy, asking him what kind of dress would suit her best for whichever event she had planned that night.

This hyper focused attention screeched to a halt as warm hands were placed on his belly and the sound of Harry’s breathing filled his ears rather than Joni Mitchell’s heartbroken voice.

“I could have dropped that hot pan on your foot, you know. Don’t sneak up on me like that.” There was less annoyance in his voice and more empathy; he didn’t want to cause Harry any pain.

“Ah, nothing could be painful as long as I have you to myself, _Edward_.”

“Quit the cheeky act and prepare some coffee. Mugs on the top right, French press in the corner, and the coffee packet is near the oven.”

The surprise attack now passed, Draco went back to being a detail oriented figure in the kitchen, zooming from one side to another all while Harry still worked on the coffee, waiting for the water to heat up in the kettle.

~~~

Harry felt his face soften into admiration, but Draco was too absorbed in his tasks to notice. He didn't know what would come after this breakfast but he wanted to make sure this wasn’t the last time he saw Draco. Too much felt too right to walk away from this and just _never_ come **back**.

A loud whistle brought Harry back to reality. With a shake of his head, he took the kettle off the gas and poured the hot water into the glass French press. Nothing too fancy, it seemed to have been bought from a place like Ikea (which it was, Harry noticed). As the coffee steeped, Harry looked around for vanilla extract, a trick he found brought a richer flavour to his coffee and one he was sure Draco would like.

Every step felt like one in the right direction. Harry gave Draco the room he needed to make breakfast and twiddle around, while Draco paid attention to what Harry was doing but seemed to give him the benefit of the doubt that Harry would not mess up the order in his kitchen (Harry wouldn’t dare attempt such a thing). The music moved their feet around in rhythmic patterns, and slowly but surely Harry found himself swaying to the sounds created by Draco’s radio. Walking backwards to where Draco was, he took hold of his hands from behind and tried to slow dance with their bums gently pressing against each other. Soon enough Draco spun him around and took the lead, the sounds of the Beatles filling the tiny kitchen as the two of them found a rhythm they could both swing to. The moment was so perfect, it almost looked like it was out of a Hallmark movie.

~~~

“And… breakfast is ready!” Draco declared as the last sprig of rosemary was added to the mushrooms he had stir-fried. Most would say this was fairly extravagant of him but Draco believed the best thing you could do for yourself was to find time and cook yourself the best meal your resources allowed for.

“Ah! Finally! You took so long, I got bored and set up the table.”

“I mean, you should have done it anyway, but thank y-“

Draco cut himself short as he entered the living room where the dining table was. A newspaper flower stood proud in a glass Harry had found in one of Draco’s cabinets. Two plates were arranged opposite each other, complete with two pairs of forks and knives, resting on the left side of the plate, just how Draco liked. The two of them sat and began filling their plates.

Harry interspersed his scarfing of food with compliments, every bit charmed by the efforts Draco went to produce such a meal. To which all Draco could reply was, “Oh, um thank you,” and continue to be embarrassed at the praise as well as perplexed at Harry’s eating habits. Once breakfast was completed, the two walked to the sofa and plopped down with full bellies.

“I haven’t had a meal like that in a long time,” Harry expressed.

“I haven’t had anyone that hungry to share it with in a long time.” Draco chided.

It was true. His only friend who ate like Harry did had left their hometown years ago and, apart from the occasional message Draco received, he didn’t know where he was or what he was doing.

Harry cautiously showed interest, careful not to seem too eager, and politely replied, “Oh?” The tone of a question formed as a concern.

“Yeah, he went away a long time ago, I’d rather not speak about it.”

Draco turned his head away and frowned.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Harry paused. He wanted to know more but understood how Draco felt. He did have another question, or really a proposition. One that might have an answer he didn’t like, but he sure hoped Draco would comply with.

“I understand you may be busy but, would you like to take a quick nap with me?”

Draco turned his head around so fast, Harry could hear Draco’s neck crick. That was not a question he seemed to expect but it made him smile nonetheless.

“Are you sure it’s going to _be_ a _quick_ one?”

“I’m not sure, but why not take a chance?”

As a reply, Draco’s smile widened a little and he crawled onto Harry’s side, lightly nudging him to the outer edge of the sofa and quickly pulled the blanket that lay on the ledge of the couch over the two of them. Harry’s body engulfed Draco under the comforter and soon, they were both fast asleep.

~~~

By the time they woke it was closer to sundown than it was to sunrise. Harry wasn’t surprised by this, the nap was quite wonderful. Draco feigned shock and irritation as he leapt up from the couch exclaiming, “Harry, I _told_ you it wouldn’t be a ‘short’ nap! Why did I take the chance?!”

This wasn’t a question no matter how much it sounded like one because _of course_ Draco knew the answer. Harry was comfortable and the blankets were unusually warm, it was no surprise he would have happily taken another nap even if it meant that he would wake up tomorrow afternoon.

“You took the chance because I’m just that _irresistible_ , of course.” Harry smirked and simply pulled Draco back down to the couch, who happily gave in.

The rest of their evening was spent the way it went last night, in getting to know each other so deeply that the only time they stopped talking was when they stuffed their faces with the leftovers from breakfast.

_“Your friends did what?”_

_“Yup, we snuck out of our dormitories and threw a whole party, it was our last year after all!”_

_“You really would rather be harmed painfully than eat_ **_slugs_ ** _?”_

_“Yes, Harry, I would! Slugs are filthy and_ **_disgusting_ ** _.”_

The night went on this way, playing would you rather and asking each other questions that had no limit of depth. Of course, they didn’t include their family histories. No, that was stilltoo intimate, too painful and dysfunctional to bring up with someone the other had barely known, until recently.

Soon, in an attempt to have a comfortable night, the two lazily went to Draco’s room. The lights went off and Harry and Draco turned their backs to each other and quickly found themselves drifting off to sleep. Harry could have gone home, very easily so. Draco could have told him to go back to his house but he couldn’t let go of the feeling that he was just meant to be here. He didn’t know if he would be here tomorrow evening when Draco returned from grocery shopping, he hoped he would, but for now all Draco could do was appreciate the fact that Harry _stayed another night_. Even if they weren’t going to have sex, Harry still stayed. This was all too new to handle and in some ways, it felt too quick.


	2. Sincerity Is Scary

Before the moon could bid adieu, Draco softly slipped out of the covers and tiptoed into the bathroom. He showered the rest of the night away; he had only slept with Harry once, not even _with_ , just _next to Harry_ , but it still made him feel as if he were stuffed full of butterflies when he thought of how intense their conversations were getting, how intensely Harry had already started to look at him. How anything Harry said made him turn so pink that Pansy would have called him “Peaches”. Before the water could get any colder, Draco stepped out and his thoughts fluttered about as the steam settled down.

Draco wrapped the towel around his waist and stood in front of the mirror, wondering how time passed so quickly with Harry that he couldn’t even process all the anxiety that had built up inside him. Just then, Harry started knocking.

“Draco are you in there? Could you open up, please? I need to use the loo.”

Draco kept quiet. Maybe Harry would leave, waiting until Draco was ready to come out. Harry rapped on the door even more rapidly as his apparent need to use the toilet became even more urgent with each second that passed by.

Draco was trapped. Either he could let Harry in and be unwontedly vulnerable with him at the worst possible time or keep the door closed for a few more minutes with the hope that Harry would eventually give up, although it didn’t seem like that was going to be the case anytime soon.

“Go away! I’m changing you wanker.”

If the universe was on his side, that would have been enough to drive Harry away from the bathroom.

But of course it wasn’t.

“Draco, I know we haven’t had sex yet but we have the same parts you know, nothing I haven’t seen before. So let me in!”

It was unlikely that he would give up anytime soon, and while Draco was aware of this, he tried his luck for a few more seconds until Harry’s knocking became incessant. As the lock turned, Harry’s knocking stopped.

Without any warning, Draco’s face started heating up as he stood with his head bent down in front of the sink and his back to Harry. His eyes trying to blink away tears away with little success, Draco tried his best to cover his face as Harry’s focus was shifted to finally being able to use the loo.

“What took you so long? And I don’t see any clothes around here so you couldn’t have been changing. Is everything alright?” Harry asked with growing concern when Draco simply turned his head away instead of answering.

Draco didn’t even try to reply. Shuddering in embarrassment, he tried breathing in and out quietly. Losing his grip right now would only bring forth questions he didn’t want to answer. He heard the flush before he heard Harry’s voice.

“Draco?” Cautiously, Harry approached Draco, pressing his head against his shoulder. Just hearing his name in that tone made Draco’s anxiety shoot up even higher. Feeling pity in Harry’s voice was worse than facing him because it would only bring about more unwanted discussions.

Just as he was about to leave the bathroom with whatever dignity he had left, Harry grabbed his elbow and turned him around, pulling him into the tightest hug Draco had ever received. Once Draco relaxed considerably, he heard Harry softly whisper in his ear softly whispering into his ear, “Do you want to talk about anything?”

Harry’s warm breath falling on his neck was enough to make Draco reconsider his decision to simply be silent and softly nod his head. Harry seemed to understand Draco’s predicament and chose to let go of him and walked out of the bathroom instead.

“Where are you going?” Draco hated how needy he sounded but with all that he was feeling, he couldn’t be bothered.

“I’ll be right back, sit down and turn off the lights.” Deciding to give Harry the benefit of the doubt, Draco did as told and quietly waited, gently rocking back and forth when Harry started to take too long.

“I’m back!” came Harry’s voice, muffled by the giant blanket he wore around his head while he carried a tray of assorted dishes.

Draco could only smile. “Harry you look ridiculous, what are you even _doing_?”

“Well, the bathroom is a great place for conversation and you don’t have black out curtains in your home and even though I made the bed already, I don’t mind making it again if I can make this place comfortable for you. So, I grabbed some ice cream because it has been guaranteed to make all of my moods better and every movie I have ever watched also confirms my hypothesis. And I got some water in case we need to hydrate ourselves.” Harry ended with a child-like smile.

Draco was caught off-guard; no one had ever done something even close to this in all his years of dating people. In a strange way, just this act of wonderfulness from Harry made his anxiety calm down a little even though his heart raced faster.

“Oh, Harry, you didn’t have to do this,” he said as he held his hand to his heart, praying nothing ever happened to this perfect human.

“Hush, now even if you don’t want to talk about why your face was red as a rose shortly after one of the best nights of doing nothing I have ever had, we are going to make sure that it’s bright as the sun once I’m done with you. Now, have some of the remaining ice cream I found in your freezer while I lay these blankets down. Don’t even worry about it, they will be going straight into the machine after this.” Draco startled, as Harry practically took the words right out of his mouth.

As he took a spoonful of ice cream, for _breakfast_ no less, Draco frowned. “Harry, I don’t remember there being any ice cream. I’m positive I finished it last week over dinner with a friend of mine.” Just as Draco made that observation, the faint light from the bathroom window showed that Harry had stopped all movement.

“Oh, um I suppose you didn’t because I found this at the back of the freezer, maybe you forgot about it?”

“Huh, maybe,” Draco shrugged. “I do remember being somewhat wasted that night. We were celebrating something or other, I suppose I forgot a lot of things.” Draco chuckled. Harry audibly sighed in relief and continued laying down the blankets, trying to fluff them in the right places as Draco continued devouring his “breakfast.”

Both of them settled down as Harry carefully picked up his own ice cream bowl from the side. “Now, Draco, how are you?” The question was so basic and yet, it made Draco feel like he was in a discount therapy session. It felt better than he wanted it to.

“Well, _not good_ , clearly.” Draco’s sharp tone didn’t seem to faze Harry in the slightest.

“Clearly. Do you want to talk about it? We can always just talk about something else, you know? For example, I have a friend who has six other siblings, all of whom are total redheads but he married a _blonde_ , can you even imagine the _catastrophe_ that was.” Harry feigned shock as he spoke about his friends.

Draco gasped audibly, “Oh that is disastrous! Do they have blond or red-haired children? Please, tell me more!”

Harry laughed, “A red-haired daughter if you truly wanted to know. And quit it! I’m supposed to be making you feel better, not the other way around!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop. To answer your earlier question, I don’t think I can talk about it in detail but I do know that I started questioning this whole weekend for no rhyme or reason.” Before he could go into any sort of spiral, Draco stopped himself and tried to give Harry the opportunity to say whatever he wanted to.

“Firstly, that is the least irrational thought I’ve ever seen anyone have. Secondly, if I’m being honest, I haven’t let it cross my mind but I do know that the second I leave your sight, all the questions about everything we are and we aren’t, are going to come flooding in. And trust me, I have a lot of questions. But we’re going to work _through_ this _together_. Everyone in relationships has big doubts, little doubts, mild doubts, but what makes them _doubts_ , is that it isn’t our intuition that’s telling us something is wrong, it’s the fear of something _turning_ wrong that forces our brains to come up with ridiculous questions.” Draco now feared that Harry was the wiser one in their relationship, which was not something that he would ever say out loud, that’s for sure.

Even though Harry could barely see anything in the faint light of the bathroom, Draco nodded along, wanting Harry to go on.

“Have we _really_ only known each other for a few days? Yes. Does that diminish the fact that we know this could be something strong? Not at all! Now I don’t know what the cause of your concerns are, and I understand that it’s personal but if I may offer some advice?” Harry asked, looking for a green light from Draco.

Normally, Draco would tell someone to go fuck themself if they tried to give him any advice but he could tell that Harry was only trying to help, the least he could do was comply.

“Uh, sure. Go ahead.”

“Let me reassure you by saying that this isn’t advice I have come up with, rather advice I’ve been given by a very wise friend of mine. ‘For every thought you have that seems irrational, but you may not be able to tell the difference between rational and irrational in the moment, find two reasons to deflect your doubts. So let’s try it now. Suppose my brain is telling me, hey you are terrible at conversation, I should find a way to reply with two reasons for why that thought isn’t true. Those reasons here would be, I am great at asking people questions and if I was bad at conversations, I wouldn’t have had a headmaster for a friend. Does that make any sense? I can’t tell.” Harry finished with a laugh.

Draco put his hand on Harry’s shoulder as he tried making some sort of eye contact with Harry’s face. “It makes perfect sense,” he reassured Harry as he caressed his face. “And while it may not have been the solution I was looking for, it certainly is a solution I’ll be grateful to have one day, I’m sure.”

That was enough to make Harry smile and melt in Draco’s hand.

Trying to derail the conversation, Draco decided to ask Harry questions about himself instead.

“If I may ask, where did you get your communication skills from? People I know would have just left me alone if I didn’t want to answer their questions.” It had even been the way of order in his own home and so talking about any feelings he had, was either ignored or frowned upon. When he found Pansy, he realised he could open up more but since she too was brought up in a similar way, there were few times the two of them shared any heart-to-heart conversations.

Harry laughed. “You flatter me. As a child I didn’t have the best or really any kind of positive relationship with my family and when I joined a new school, I had more responsibility than I signed up for so I didn’t have time to beat around the bush. Being direct was all I knew and then I went out into the real world, realised how rude I could be and then asked my friends why they didn’t tell me sooner,” Harry continued in nostalgia. “Went through some stuff with my ex and had many reality checks on the way, I suppose. Communication hasn’t come easy for me but it’s also something to work on constantly, it really never stops.”

For some reason, Draco felt like he knew Harry better right at this moment, more than ever before. With all that they shared over the course of their nights together, nothing that could make either of them vulnerable was discussed. And now, Draco felt utterly stupid for having any sort of anxiety about Harry and him in the first place.

Unable to say anything more, Draco abruptly pulled Harry into the tightest hug he had ever given anyone.

“Thank you. If it isn’t clear, you are so _wonderful_.”

Stroking Draco’s head, Harry was only able to reply softly, “You’re welcome, and don’t you ever forget how absolutely incredible you truly are, Draco.”

~~~

Harry had stayed at Draco’s house for all of two days and though he knew staying here would only bring about better days, there was much to be done at his new home. While Harry did need the break from the hassle of moving into his apartment, it needed to be done and soon.

While Draco was freshening up, Harry threw their blankets into the laundry, put on his clothes, and began searching around for a piece of pen and paper. As much as he didn’t want to leave like this, it was getting late and he had only so much time before he had to go to work. Moreover, he didn’t want to interrupt Draco’s bathroom concert. Once the items were acquired, Harry tried to make his handwriting as legible as he could and simply wrote:

_“Dear Draco,_

_You met me at a very strange time of my life and the past 48 hours have been absolutely wonderful and I’m so grateful that we met. The food was so incredible too. I'm sorry I had to leave like this, I remembered an urgent appointment I had and needed to leave immediately. I hope what I said resonated with you, if you need anything else, you can call or text me at this number:_

_797617809_

_Look forward to hearing from you,_

_H.Potter”_

Harry collected his belongings and rushed out the doorway, with his shirt half tucked in and his shoes untied and his glasses resting haphazardly on his face. Taxis were difficult to find on a Monday morning but a quick whistle and Harry caught one just in time for his appointment.

“Wayfair street, please.”

Harry took a few minutes to settle in while his mind refused to do the same. All the questions he had pushed away the second he met Draco bubbled up within the first minute he had to himself in forty-eight hours. How would he explain his life, his true history to Draco? The Wizarding world wasn’t kind to Muggles or really anyone _different_ from them. So, was this person _really_ worth all the trouble he would go through? Could he tell anyone about it or was this something he would have to keep under wraps? The Daily Prophet would have a field day with this and Harry didn’t know if he could ever be ready for that kind of magnified observation in his life again.

Worrying about a relationship that barely existed right now, before Harry reached his appointment, would only make for a more rushed one. To calm himself down, Harry did the best thing he could with the remaining few minutes he had to himself - plug his earbuds in and press play on his favourite playlist as he continued taking deep breaths and looking out the smudged window at the racing street passing by to relax himself.

_“No, this is not the end and no final tears_

_That we need to show_

_I thought that this would last for a million years_

_But now I need to go_

_Oh, fuck."_

Harry’s heart beat rapidly as he listened to the lyrics, his mind processing them. Being with Draco truly did feel like it would last for a million years but Harry didn’t have faith to make a relationship last that long. The fact that he was able to talk so deeply and comfortably with someone for a full forty-eight hours, was most surprising. In all the time that he had spent with Draco not once did he want to run away or hide or cause disappointment.

As if all of a sudden, they came to an abrupt halt; before Harry heard the driver say anything, he looked over at the glowing numbers on the meter that read 7.58, and without removing his earbuds placed a ten pound note in the driver’s eagerly empty hand. With an exchange of firm nods, Harry stepped out of the taxi, walking as quickly as he could to the glass building that passively anticipated him.

In another part of town, Draco dried himself off with a towel as he stood in front of his cupboard wondering what he could wear that would make him look fabulous but in a way that seemed effortless.

Oblivious that his home was empty, Draco called out, “Harry, do you have any plans for the day?” Not receiving a reply, he tried his luck again. “Harry? Are you there?”

The absence of a reply dropped Draco’s heart to the ground and his anxiety seemed to be knocking with a new rhythm. Harry'd had a change of heart, he didn't want to be around Draco anymore - maybe he had gotten tired of being around him. Soon, Draco began spiralling, every type of worst case scenario filling his head as he paced around his bedroom, not only unable to decide what he was going to wear but do for the day as if subconsciously, he let his day rely on what Harry wanted to do. It had only been two days, for goodness’ sake!

Only on a third round of his chaotically organised room did he notice the tiny white piece of paper that laid flat under a paper weight. Draco grabbed the note and read it as fast he could. As he reached the end, a heavy sigh of relief released from his chest. Every word made him feel better and before he knew it, Draco had read it five times. The note was placed in the empty space of his wallet, a newfound attachment was created for a piece of paper that Draco wouldn’t give away for the world. In an effort to keep his spirits high, Draco went to his wardrobe and picked out his most comfortable set of clothes: blue jeans, a black turtleneck, a belt and his best pair of clunky boots. An afternoon alone is exactly what he needed, or so Draco tried to convince himself.

The morning shone bright with hope and fluffy clouds greeted Draco as he walked out of his building. The turtleneck certainly kept him warm as the winds blew swiftly in every direction. A strong espresso delivered by his favourite barista was exactly what Draco needed to set his morning off in the right direction and since he had taken some vacation days this week, he was free to do nothing. The last time he remembered having this much free time was the summer before he went off to college. Free time was not something he knew how to fill up but he knew just the person who did.

Draco quickly crossed the street and walked to the best coffee shop he had ever known. It was small yet inviting but not so much so where it got crowded this time of day - the perfect balance. As soon as Draco walked in, Julianna waved him over to the counter. Her presence was one of the many reasons this particular coffee shop became such a significant part of Draco’s morning routine every single day.

“Hi Draco! It’s been a few days - did you get busy?” She asked as she raised her eyebrows suggestively. While Julianna was a lovely person she also loved gossip and so did Draco. As a result, it wasn’t a surprise when they found themselves becoming the fastest of friends.

“You know me so well Jul, and with that I would love a glazed doughnut and your best espresso, presto.”

With a hearty laugh, Julianna nodded her head, “Coming right up Draco!”

Fortunately enough, Draco’s favourite spot was not yet occupied. It was the best one here, right by the window that faced the park and buildings near it aligning perfectly with the busy street in front of it. He quietly sat down as he pulled out his phone and called the one person who would hate it if he didn’t update her everyday, Pansy.

“Hello. Who is this?”

“Pansy don’t play, you know it’s me”

“Me? I don’t know anyone that goes by the name of Me, is that French?”

Draco simply rolled his eyes. Every time he went more than twenty-four hours without talking to her, Pansy made passive aggressive comments until he owed her another lunch or pair of shoes. He owed a lot of lunches and shoes, suffice to say.

Draco wasn’t in the mood to play along so he cut right to the chase. “I’ll buy you lunch today at Paul’s at three o’clock. And I have some news if you have any interest in hearing me out.” Draco had been playing the passive aggressive game for twenty-five years now, Pansy barely had any hold on him anymore.

“Fine,” Pansy replied, clearly giving in, “What’s the news?”

“I met this guy and—“ just as Draco was going to give her the more shocking part of his story, a shadow fell above his table.

“And? What is it? Spit it out.”

Stunned at the person standing before him, all Draco could reply was, “Pansy… I’ll call you back.”

Suddenly, Draco’s leg started shaking uncontrollably. Even as he put a hand on it to stop the shaking, his leg seemed to have a mind of its own and simply bounced even faster as he tried to spill words, any words, to come out of his mouth.

“Um… He-hi Nicolas, Di-didn’t know _you_ worked here.”

“Oh hello, Draco!”

Nicolas’ cheery reply made Draco a strange sort of angry but he quietly listened to the rest of his explanation.

“I started about two weeks ago and I usually do night shifts but Julianna needed the extra help today so I switched shifts! Here is your extra hot espresso and warm doughnut. Julianna filled me in on how you liked your order. Enjoy!”

All that was good about Draco’s mood fled now that he knew Nicolas worked at his favourite shop. Draco thought he’d left everything that reminded him of Nicolas long ago. Somehow, the universe decided two good days were one too many and that Draco was overdue an awkward encounter.

Not trusting himself to turn into a sobbing mess at the table, Draco simply texted Pansy that today’s afternoon lunch was going to be a heavy one and that there would be loads of shopping involved so she should most definitely dress comfortably. Every bone in his body begged to leave this place as quickly as possible but Draco knew that it wasn’t an option. He needed to finish his coffee at a normal pace since he simply couldn’t let Nicolas know how much the very knowledge of his existence made Draco so angry he could have thrown a plate. Pansy would know what to do. Lunch was all that Draco looked forward to now.


	3. Frail State Of Mind

“Hello, Harry. How are we doing today?”

Even after years of therapy, Harry still plucked the hem of his shirt or picked his cuticles when Elena asked him this question. 

“Alright, I suppose. No nightmares this week.” He slightly chuckled at this, so many of his appointments surrounded his nightmares but whenever he didn’t have them, the sessions seemed more generic. 

“That’s good news! Did the exercises help?”

He didn’t want to disappoint Elena by telling her that they didn’t ever help but he also didn’t want to lie and tell her that he did them. Evading was his only option. It might work there was no way of knowing besides trying.

“I…uh, wasn’t able to practice them the past few days.” 

At this statement, her eyebrows scrunched down as she scribbled down notes in her trusty notepad. The note taking made Harry a lot more anxious at the beginning of his sessions than it did now; they seemed to soothe him. It meant that someone was able to notice things about himself that he had trouble with, and it would eventually give him more clarity. 

“Is there a particular reason, or did you forget?” Elena looked concerned, and whether he wanted to or not, the words simply started bubbling out of him. 

“Um, two actually. I wasn’t at home for two days and I met a guy. He’s absolutely wonderful but I don’t know so much about him and he doesn’t know so much about me. I’m so scared but he was also the reason I didn’t have nightmares this weekend. Maybe it was the comfort of someone near me that made me calm through the night or the thought of him finding out about who I am, that scared me too much for me to show him that side of myself.” 

Before Harry could ramble any longer, Elena slightly raised her hand to stop him from spiralling any longer. It was a way that worked best since interrupting Harry often left him confused as to where he was going with his own speech. 

From Elena’s gesture, Harry knew a tough question was coming up, and he wasn’t wrong. “Do you think this person would understand your past?” 

Harry ran his hands through his hair, thinking to how Draco’s hands were just there a few hours back, making him feel at his most comfortable self. 

“I really don’t know, I want to say yes? But I just met him and yet everything clicks into place with him around. Whether it’s in conversation or making breakfast together.” 

His leg started shaking the more he thought of Draco, being sure of something so soon did not make logical sense, and lately logic and routine was what got him through the day. Was he just supposed to cave when someone like Draco came into his life, tossing everything about?

“Harry, I can tell that this situation makes you nervous. The best thing I would recommend you do at this time is to take this relationship and your feelings about it one day at a time. If you feel that things are clicking right now, great. But don’t let that steer you away from what’s truly important right now. Which is focusing on yourself, and your goals. Let’s put this aside for the time being, until you have a little more clarity. Now, where did we leave off last week?”

There was no denying that she was right. He certainly didn’t want to lose himself in the whirlwind of what could be this relationship. 

“Well, I was in the midst of finding new job opportunities since I’ve been in a proper rut these past couple of months and we decided that I would try to find something I liked doing and see if there were any job opportunities relating to it.” 

Harry went into this weekend looking for a job and instead, found a strange form of a relationship. 

“Oh, yes. How did it go? Did you find something you liked doing?” 

“I think I have, actually. I just bought a new apartment near Baker Street and since I didn’t have many belongings that were mine in the old apartment, I decided to design it myself!” 

Harry was excited about his new project. He’d never designed a space before - everything had always been decided for him, and with this new project he had a proper place to focus his energy on. 

“So I went to Ikea to find inspiration as to how to design my new home and I loved it. I even helped this lovely older couple decide on a dining room layout. Now, I’m not an interior designer by any means, I don’t even see the need for a pair of hundred pound jeans, they all look the same! But I can see myself helping people with their homes and advising them on how to make their homes more functional and beautiful.” 

Harry was practically out of breath by the end of his sentence. His excitement seemed to bubble out of him at the most unexpected times. 

Picking up the glass of water on the table in front of him, Harry gave Elena enough time to scribble some more notes as she found the words to help express her thoughts. 

“Well, that certainly sounds like a plan. Do you think you would be able to handle the pressure of retail?” Harry chuckled at this, Elena, realising her choice of words did too. “Harry, you know what I mean. Saving the world is one thing, retail is entirely different. Mothers and children fussing about, throwing around items without a care but also shouting at anyone in charge for mistakes of their own making.”

Elena’s concern did not go unnoticed and Harry made sure she was aware of this. 

“I did think about that, but I also know that I can really help people. It’s the only job that’s felt right. I’ve tried and failed at so many jobs I truly don’t want to be in this rut anymore. It also felt like a sign since I met him there too, he was looking for mugs and thought I worked there because I wore my favourite yellow shirt that day.” 

Harry smiled at the thought of how he and Draco met. It was a proper movie moment and he would probably never get over it. 

“It’s wonderful that you want to help yourself Harry but I also hope you go into this with the right intentions and I don’t just mean the job, you know. You got out of a significantly long and exhaustive, not to forget an important relationship only six months ago. If you genuinely see yourself working at Ikea, wonderful! Go for it and send in your application by the end of tomorrow. You know what you will need to do if things get difficult. However, a real relationship doesn’t work with that kind ease- that if you find a problem you can break up, you more than anyone knows this Harry. So be sure you know what you’re getting yourself into and remember to take it one step at a time.”

Usually Elena wasn’t so vocal with what she thought of Harry’s decisions but lately she’d been constantly trying to help understand what he already knew in different ways. It wasn’t that Harry was ungrateful but he also didn’t know where all of this was coming from.

Harry sighed. “I know what you’re trying to get at Elena but what is prompting you to say all this? Your approach has never been to let me know what I was doing wrong. I was getting used to that.” His voice was light but the implication of his words were not. 

“I guess I figured that I would have to undertake a different approach if we needed to make progress with what you’re going through. All that I have tried before, clearly isn’t working anymore.” 

Harry’s shock at her words had to have been evident on his face. It never even occurred to him that therapy wasn’t working as well as he wanted it to. Nonetheless, he supposed Elena was right. The sessions were starting to get repetitive recently and her input today was helping him look at things in a different light but also help him be more sure of his own decisions. 

“You aren’t wrong, I have been feeling like our sessions haven’t been fulfilling me as much as they used to in the beginning. And I do like the input and feedback you’ve been giving me today. I feel like I have a lot to work with, if I’m being completely honest.” 

Elena seemed pleased with his statement, nodding her head she jot down some more notes. One day, Harry was going to find a way to get his hands on that notebook.

“I’m glad to hear that Harry. Unfortunately, our time is up. How about you send me a picture of a completed application, to Ikea of all places, and then we can meet next week?”

Harry nodded, “That works perfectly. Thank you for the reflections today. I’ll be sure to send you one of me filling it out.”

Elena smiled and cheekily replied, “Thank you for paying me on time and in advance. I’ll see you then.” 

Harry laughed and quietly stood up.

As he walked out the door, Harry decided dropping a small but surprising bomb on Elena would only do her some good. 

“Oh by the way, we didn’t even have sex. Bye Elena!” Seeing the astonished look on her face was enough for Harry and he quickly sprinted down the hallway until the elevators were in plain sight.


	4. Loving Someone

Since it would be absurd for Draco to stay in one coffee shop for over two hours, he decided it was high time he left and found something else to do. The city could be fun in the daytime if he looked hard enough. Making a sneaky exit was going to be tough but Draco was sure he could manage it. All he had to do was not shake the table, not walk too quickly nor walk too slowly, not rattle his keys but instead, be the definition of stealth. Easy.

Sure enough, as soon as he stood up, his cup rattled and his keys dropped to the floor and trying to pick them up only caused him a minor head injury as he banged his head on the edge of his table. Clumsy was never a word anyone would use to describe Draco but today he was the textbook definition of it. 

Thankfully, Julianna was the only one who took notice of the commotion which was most likely because Nicolas was at the back of the store taking care of another task. Draco bet a hundred pounds it wasn’t his relationships. 

“Draco! You alright there?” Julianna exclaimed as Draco furiously rubbed his head.

“I’m fine. Possibly a minor head injury but I’ve dealt with worse.” As he stood up, Draco straightened the wrinkles out of his shirt and dusted off his pants, “I was just about to leave, in fact. Do I have yet to pay for anything?”

“No, you’re all good. It was nice seeing you after a while. Next time you’re around, bring about your beau too, why don’t you?”

“Sure Jul, I’ll make sure you’re one of the first to meet him.” 

Draco laughed as Julianna did too. They hugged each other once he made sure all of his belongings were with him and he had no excuse to return back for the day. 

After leaving the cafe, Draco decided that shopping for groceries would be the best use of his time until he could meet Pansy. Two hours later, with multiple plastic bags digging into his arms practically making them a whole new colour of red, Draco’s phone started to ring loudly as he crossed the threshold of his house. Cursing Pansy in his head, he dropped all his bags with a thud.

“How is it that you always call me at the wrong time?” he asked, only slightly annoyed at her timing.

“It’s a special talent, I think.” Pansy replied, snark flowing through her voice, “Anyways, I’m leaving now and will probably reach Paul’s fifteen minutes or so? Don’t be late.” 

Pansy and Draco were taught to always be punctual throughout their childhoods, yet Draco always seemed to be late no matter how early he left. Pansy decided it was because he liked being “fashionably late.” She wasn’t wrong, but he would never give her the satisfaction of knowing that.

Draco loved the outfit he was wearing so his commute would be the only factor that made him right on time or late. Quickly, he had sorted his groceries by putting cold produce in the fridge and left anything he could sort out later, on his dining table. Once Draco was out of his apartment, the elevator dinged open for someone on the same floor as him. The first day he'd moved into his apartment was the only day he had spoken to anyone, Draco wasn’t one for becoming close friends with his neighbours, unless they knew famous celebrities or had fantastic connections of course. 

He wondered what Harry would think of his opinion. ‘The cherub likely thought it would be wonderful getting to know his neighbours,’ Draco thought with a smile. Since he’d met Harry all he could see were the different ways he would make Draco a better person, and he couldn’t wait for when that time came. 

Stepping into the elevator, the bellhop that had interacted with Draco earlier in the morning was replaced with a shorter, quieter one and he was all the more happy about that. Unfortunately for Draco, the person who'd gotten in the elevator with him was not as quiet and even more cheery than a bunny on the day of Easter.

“Hi! My name is Jerry, are you new here?” he asked Draco, excitedly.

With a pained smile, Draco replied shortly, “Hello. Draco. No, been here a few months.”

Deciding it was now a conversation and being unable to take a hint, Jerry continued making small conversation, the worst kind of conversation Draco decided. 

“The weather has been lovely, hasn’t it?! Ah, perfect for cycling around the lake. You know I recently moved down the corridor a few weeks back. Come over sometime, I’d love the company!” 

Draco’s shoulders inadvertently curled as Jerry offered to open his home to him. Invitations such as these were always out of his comfort zone but his mother would have a fit if she knew that Draco hadn’t accepted a polite man’s invitation. 

“Um, thank you for the offer but I am quite busy the next few weeks. I’ll see you around, though?” Jerry’s face visibly fell as Draco uttered those words and had begun to regret it a little, but before he could take his words back, the elevator dinged open for the ground floor.

“See you later Draco.” 

Quickly enough, Jerry was out of Draco’s sight and the lift attendant hadn’t said anything but Draco could feel the judgement radiating off of him so he'd sprinted off the elevator too hoping to never see either of them again. 

Thirteen minutes later Draco reached Paul's and Pansy had yet to arrive which gave him rights to pick his favourite seating. Today had been a long day and it wasn’t even five in the evening, he would take any win he could get. Two minutes later, Pansy was at the booth Draco picked out, her face plastered with a humoured smile.

“Wow, this is a first, you’re actually early! How have you been darling?” With all of her snark, Pansy was still the first person Draco would go to for anything and everything. 

Getting up from his seat, he gave her a tight hug, almost melting with the comfort it brought him. 

“Missed you too Pans. I’ve been better but I’ve also been worse, so that’s a first too.”

At his reply, Pansy squeezed him even tighter before finally sliding into the booth and settling herself down. 

“Before we can unpack that, do you wanna order something? I am positively famished.” 

“Hm, yeah I could eat.” Draco replied. They quickly scanned through the menu that was kept on the table, and called upon the server nearest to them.

“Hi, can we get two chocolate eclairs, two coffees, one quiche Lorraine and a vegan reuben roll,” Pansy had requested, snapping the menu shut.

“Of course ma’am, would you like that all at once or as it’s prepared?” 

“All at once is perfect, thank you.” 

Nodding at her clarification, the waiter took down their order and walked away to the kitchens, leaving the two alone. 

“I love when you order for us, it’s always what I want.” Draco mentioned in awe. 

“I know, that’s why I do it,” Pansy giggled. “It would be atrocious manners if I knew you for so many years and not know what you’d like to have!”

“Now tell me, what was so important that you had to awkwardly cut our call this morning?” Pansy just asked the question Draco had been dreading the most, but he also wanted to talk about it so he was glad she brought it up otherwise they would have been here longer than necessary. 

Dragging this would only be painful for him so Draco had simply told her in one long rambling speech: “Well, I went to the coffee shop next to my apartment after a week or so mostly because I was busy with this man, yes the one I mentioned earlier, and he was absolutely wonderful. We just talked all night and day two nights in a row, and we didn’t even do anything besides that!” Draco nodded rapidly at Pansy’s shocked face and continued. “Yeah, I know! And as I was reeling in the happiness of that and meeting Jul after so long, out of nowhere, pops up Nicolas, who I haven’t heard a peep of in the last six months when I caught him practically cheating on me in our bedroom and just gives me my order while talking to me about his shift change! All happy and cheery like nothing happened! Like we were just two pals catching up!”

Before Draco could go on any further, Pansy cut him off. “Please, cheating on you was the least of what he did, are we forgetting the stunt he pulled with your mum about wanting to marry you only after he saw how bloody rich you were? The nerve of that wanker! He didn’t even apologise or acknowledge anything?” she asked him angrily, and somewhat loudly since some heads turned at her volume.

“Shh!” Draco was always easily embarrassed in public places but Pansy had simply waved him off, silently asking him to continue, “Don’t even remind me about that. Well, I couldn’t just leave right? So I stuck it out for an hour or so and just said goodbye to Juliana when he wasn’t around. It threw me off so badly I almost forgot that Harry existed and how wonderful he is.”

Pansy had tensed up at Draco’s sentiment towards Harry. Her suspicion never did any good and often caused Draco unwanted anxiety but he couldn’t avoid it since her opinion was held with high regard even if it didn’t always add up with Draco’s partner’s actions. 

“Well you know I’m terrible at predicting the future of your relationships but more importantly, do you think you’re ready for a relationship after what Nicolas did?”

Draco bit his lip. It wasn’t like he hadn’t asked himself this question but with all that Harry was and the way he cared for Draco, only knowing him for a couple of hours, how could he not be ready for a relationship with this man? Who else would leave a reassuring message even when they were in a hurry?

With more surety in his voice than Draco thought existed within him he answered Pansy in the best way he knew how, with an analogy only she would understand. 

“He has been the only person who has ever let me feel like I was given the key to his home. Not just I feel like I am Pans, we weren’t intimate with each other and yet I still felt like I knew him better than anyone else in his life. Like we’ve known each other for years. Taking a pause, Draco continued, “So, yeah. I think I am ready. If not now, then when? If not him, then whom?”

There was nothing Pansy could say to that, she had trouble looking for the kind of love Draco fortunately had luck with. He was grateful, times like these, to have her. Often, it was Pansy who put his doubts and his irrationalities in place, her protectiveness saved him in the past. Draco would do anything to make sure her opinion mattered here too, no matter how sure he felt about Harry, he would only feel at ease once Pansy gave her approval. She was more than a friend, she was his rock. 

“Wow, well I don’t have much to say to that, honestly. I’ve never seen you be this sure of someone. Even Nicolas seemed like a shot in the dark despite how much he had in common with you,” Pansy conversed, as she took small bites of her food in between sentences. She wasn’t wrong, however.

“I just, really like him Pansy. I really like this guy.” Draco softly squeaked, the thought of Harry excited him too much. 

“Doesn’t seem like there’s much I can say to reassure you, does there? I’ve never seen you like this Draco!” Pansy exclaimed happily, “I kind of like it to be completely frank.” Draco giggled at this, he liked it too. A lot. 

Shortly after the two had finished their lunch, determining what to do after was a difficult decision to make. Mostly because Pansy wanted to shop for shoes and Draco wanted to shop for mugs.

“You texted me, ‘there will be loads of shopping involved, so dress comfortable’! And to think I might have wasted my cutest pair of comfortable heels for Ikea.” Pansy griped.

“Well, to be fair to myself, I didn’t mention where we were shopping. If it helps, we’ll go to a few stores after that, alright?” Negotiation was the only way Draco could get what both he and Pansy wanted. 

“Fine. Let’s get to it then. I’ll drive.” Pansy agreed.

“Perfect, because I took a cab.” Draco added, accomplishing his mission of pissing Pansy off in the best way possible.

-

To apply for a job at Ikea, Harry would have to go there first and since he didn’t have any plans for the day, he decided to get on with finding furniture for his apartment too. It was going to be an extremely long day. 

Most people who worked at Ikea were usually friendly, but when you visited the store every other week without buying anything and managed to cause multiple (small) accidents, you started gaining a reputation. It was for these reasons that Harry was on the receiving end of multiple stink eyes and these only intensified when he walked up to the small desk where job applications and important notices were pinned up. 

Nowadays, many companies were putting up job applications on their new websites but Ikea seemingly hadn’t got the memo, Harry realised as he finished filling up his application. It was a good thing that the Ministry of Magic was able to send Muggle diplomas on such short notice, and that Harry requested for one the second he made the decision to work here last week. Once the application was all written out and a scanned picture of his “diploma” was stapled to it, he slipped everything into the tiny blue slot. As Harry slipped the documents in, his anxiety kicked in. All he could do was breathe in and out, trying his best to reassure himself that this was a good decision.

‘Okay, now that that’s done. Let’s go get confused about what I need to do with my apartment one more time.’ Harry thought, with all of it’s wonderful lighting and affordable beautiful products, coming to Ikea was tough when you didn’t know what you wanted. It was his sixth time this month and every time Harry'd left the store, he went home with a new idea in his head and then realised either his apartment could not accommodate it or he was clueless as to how to do it. 

The charming interior design of the living rooms caught Harry’s eye first, pulling him into the tiny living space. How would he be able to work here when folding his own clothes took so much out of him? With every room he visited, Harry fell more in love with different aspects of each of them whether it was the curtains in the living room or the wall cabinet in the mock bedroom or the pots and pans in the kitchen. None of the rooms matched the kind of style he was usually drawn to but they were all so quaint, Harry would have made it his home if he could do so. It would be a lot easier than buying, arranging and organising the items for his own home. 

Soon enough, Harry started getting tired of walking around in circles and propped himself on the most comfortable chair he could find and chose to observe the families shopping for their own homes instead. Little children played house with themselves or their siblings, switching the stoves on and off, testing out the beds in hopes that it could be part of their room and best of all, picking up the fluffy stuffed animals and treating them as one of their own. Mothers pushed strollers, quietly admiring the picture perfect dining tables knowing they couldn’t have nice things until their kids got older as fathers went after any Ikea worker they found to ask them a barrage of questions. 

As Harry observed passers by, he mindlessly sunk into the chair further slowly adjusting the pillow to support his back but before he could shut his eyes and drift off to sleep, someone tapped him on the shoulder. 

“Is that a good chair?” A familiar voice asked him. Turning around, Harry saw Draco standing right behind him next to a short girl with a black bob, arms folded and scaling him up and down.

“Draco! What are you doing here, twice in one week?” Harry chuckled, he wasn’t prepared to see Draco this soon after he left his home, especially before he got time to process what happened in the last few days. 

“Well, I needed to get some new cups since I broke mine last week and the last time I came here, a boy seduced me and we went to my house so there hadn’t been time to buy more,” Draco replied casually. Harry could feel some underlying irritation at him in that statement and since passive-aggressive responses weren’t his favourite responses in the world, Harry chose to follow his intuition. Pulling Draco’s arm, taking him to the side where his friend was out of earshot and for good measure, quietly put a silencing spell over their conversation.

“Draco, is everything okay between us? Did you not receive my note?”

The blond sighed, “I received it. I just haven’t had the best day and I was not prepared to see you here so soon. I assumed I’d just text you later and we would go out for a drink on the weekend.” As soon as those words came out of Draco’s mouth, Harry’s shoulders relaxed.

“Oh well, I’m sorry you haven’t had the best day. If it helps, likewise, I have a lot to do within the next few days. I didn’t think I would be seeing you this quickly either! It is a pleasure nonetheless.” At this, a barely visible smile appeared on Draco’s face and Harry decided to ask him a question that would make or break his afternoon.

“Draco, would you and your…friend like to help me find some furniture for my new apartment?” Harry would take all the help he could get, colour choices confused him and he had so many ideas for all that he wanted his new home to look like, picking just one would be the hardest thing he had to do. 

In an instant, Draco seemed to perk up, “Of course, Harry! I wouldn’t mind at all, Pansy might take some convincing but not a problem.” Before Harry could say anything more, Draco hurriedly walked out of the bubble of the silencing charm and took Pansy out of Harry’s earshot.


	5. Finding Friends In Materialism

Normally, Harry found solace in roaming the aisles of Ikea, fluttering about the lamps and different light switches or testing any sofa that looked comfortable (so all of them) but today having both Pansy and Draco “helping” him shop for things he needed in his apartment only made him want to set a silencing charm on them but that would be too obvious and he couldn’t risk it.

“This would be the perfect reading lamp Harry! It’s a neutral colour so it would likely go with everything and it has so many different height settings!” Pansy loved weighing out the pros and cons of the functionality of the product whereas Draco…

Loved finding something the polar opposite and confusing Harry about any decision he had his mind set on.

“He doesn’t need a reading lamp, what he _needs_ is a simple ceiling lamp with a dimming option for maximum efficiency!”

“No you half wit, that’s pointless if he only likes one light colour.” Pansy rolled her eyes and asked the million dollar question, Harry did not want to answer, “Let’s see what he likes. Harry, what do you want to do?”

“I…uh… Need a carpet!” Hoping the sudden request startled the two bumbling bees long enough that Harry could run away and have only his own confusion to sort out.

“Harry! Wait up,” Draco called out, sprinting after him. Harry cursed himself for not taking better care of his health when Draco was able to catch up to him without breaking a sweat.

“Are you alright? I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone break out into a nervous sweat over lamps.”

“I have. It’s normal.” Pansy shrugged once she caught up with the two and was in earshot of their conversation.

“Yes, well, Pansy you work in interior design. People break into a nervous sweat over choosing eggshell or off white when there's no question, eggshell is always the better option.”

“Wait, you work in interior design?” Harry was pleasantly stunned, maybe he could take her opinion on what he should do, she _did_ dress extremely well.

“I thought that was obvious? Why else would I be having so many opinions about sofa patterns?” Pansy curiously asked.

“I assumed since you were Draco’s friend, you just had opinionated feelings about a lot of things,” Harry lightly jabbed as Draco loudly snickered, covering his mouth to try and control his laughter all while Pansy simply scoffed.

“He’s not wrong, Pans, you do have many expressive thoughts about lighting options, as you so clearly displayed. Just as I do about food!”

“There's a difference between cosy, ambient lighting and downright dark and ineffectual illumination! A mistake so many people make everyday. I am _surprised_ as to how they haven’t blinded themselves with their inefficient lighting options.” Not wanting to go on any more about her design pet peeves, Pansy switched the conversation over to Harry. “Enough about me, do you have any particular colours you want to add to your home Harry? Or were you confused about that as well?”

Harry wasn’t going to admit that she was _right_ , he had taken a month to decide the one colour he wanted in at least one part of his house and it had been the colour Ron suggested the first time he saw the house.

“No, I wasn’t _confused_. I know I want maroon. I don’t know where that colour would go best, but it’s one that reminds me of a memorable time in my life and so I’d love to have it be an important colour of my home.”

“See now that’s a difficult colour to work with. Okay, what do you do for work?”

“Emerald green is _so much better_ though.” Draco muttered, sprinkling his opinion even if neither of them were hearing it.

“No it isn’t. And I was a school professor in a boarding school for a while but being closer to the city felt right so now I’m in between jobs right now, and was actually applying to Ikea before we bumped into each other.”

“Oh? Why didn’t you continue teaching here instead? Wouldn’t the switch be easier?”

“It would but I was teaching for a short while, I thought I’d take a break from it and pursue other passions. If I missed teaching, I could always go back.” Teaching at Hogwarts was a proper joy but soon, the place was bringing back too many difficult feelings and many nightmares. Moving seemed like the only feasible option at the time.

The group walked back towards the lights section as Pansy continued conversing with Harry, leaving Draco to intently listen.

“That makes sense, it’s good that you want to explore other opportunities while you still can. So what job did you apply for?”

“A home planner? I don’t know if that makes sense but I’m pretty okay with helping people design their homes but my own feels so difficult, I need all the help I can get. Organising homes for functionality and purpose is something I seem to do well, at least according to my friends when I helped them with their new house a few months ago.” Harry liked how Pansy asked him questions, it made him feel like she wanted to get to know him outside of his relationship with her best friend.

“That sounds a little bit like what Draco does! Only he does the visual planning of commercial spaces and sometimes has me help with design.”

They had now reached between the two aforementioned lighting options, now that Harry had calmed down, he was able to see what both of them meant about their respective lamp choices.

“Oh, that’s interesting! Draco vaguely mentioned something of that sort when we spoke.” Wanting to steer the conversation off himself, Harry began asking Draco questions about what he did specifically. “What type of companies have you worked with, Draco?”

“They’ve mostly been small restaurants and hotels. I still go to one of the cafe’s I designed, some of the server’s there are absolutely wonderful.” Draco said with a smile, from which Harry understood that he loved his job.

“Yeah and some are horrible.” Pansy quietly but audibly, added in. Draco jabbed her in the stomach.

“Why? What did they do?” Harry’s curious nature always got the better of him even when it knew not to comment.

“Nothing.” Draco sharply answered through his teeth. Pansy rolled her eyes and folded her arms defensibly.

“Uh, okay then.” Deciding that it was best to move away from the awkward energy, Harry focused on the lamps in front of him. One was a tall, dusky, gold lamp with an adjustable head and length. Looking at it, Harry knew that it would be one of the standout pieces in whichever room he chose to put it in. The other was a faded porcelain white, pleated fabric ceiling shade with a gold wire for hanging it to the ceiling. The muted colour and style reminded Harry of the dormitory lamps and it would provide light to all parts of the room unlike the lamp stand.

“I keep going over the pros and cons and I think I like the gold lamp stand more? I’ve already thought of a few places I could keep it.”

“It’s a good choice. Do you think you’ll need a study? I think it’s the best place to fit in some maroon and in case you ever decide to teach again, the space will be versatile enough for you to adjust it accordingly.”

“That sounds perfect! Let me find where this lamp is so we can be on our way.” Harry thought it would be best for Draco and Pansy to be left alone for a few minutes and so went on his way to find his new lamp.

“Pansy! What was that?” Draco loudly whispered.

“What was what? I didn’t tell him anything and I have been nothing but cordial all afternoon!” She was making more of an effort than Draco thought she would and while he was grateful for it, she also had a reputation for a terrible secret keeper.

“Sure but you were this close,” Draco gestured with his fingers almost meeting each other, “To tipping him off about you-know-who.”

“Fine I won’t say anything but you will have to tell him at some point. It isn’t even your fault so I don’t see what the problem is.” Pansy often took things at face value, deciding whether or not a certain problem or person was worth her precious time. This was where their similar upbringings now differed. Pansy had always been unable to lower her walls and let people in, whereas Draco spent so much time learning how to let people break them. That now, he’d just started safeguarding his heart when Harry walked in and all of them fell down again.

“It isn’t about whose fault it is, just that bringing up any of those memories back up would bring about feelings I don’t want to feel right now. Can we just get on with helping him?”

“You owe me a shopping trip, Malfoy. Just be glad I like to help people out with their new, unfurnished soon-to-be homes.”

Draco simply rolled his eyes at her transactional way of conversation.

“What fun, can’t wait.” Draco replied to her reminder of his debt.

Within a few hours, Pansy had been able to convince Harry to make three important decisions: pillow type, carpet colour and the most important, growing his assorted plant collection. To cheer Draco up, Harry picked up an emerald green single sofa-chair which worked so well, Harry was convinced he could have even cheered Draco up with a cheaper item but love didn’t come cheap, unfortunately.

“Don’t worry Draco, I won’t be keeping the chair in my ‘hideous maroon room,’ it’ll simply be in the living room.” Harry added with a satisfying smile.

“You better not. It’s, as of today, officially my chair and anytime I am at your house, the only place I’ll be sitting. Let this be known to any and all party guests you may have in the future.” Draco said with his “take me seriously” voice that Harry could now never seem to get enough of.

Banter was often what was missing towards the end of his relationship with Ginny, joking about Ron and his life choices was their favourite thing to make fun of. With all the events that took place through his years at Hogwarts, Harry never imagined himself with anyone _but_ Ginny. She would have loved coming to Ikea, would have probably played fake house with him before going back to their real house. Sometimes he wanted to punch himself for letting her go so easily whereas the next second wanting to thank and hug Ginny for letting him go when she did. Otherwise, he would have never found the person he had been waiting for his whole life.

“Hello? Harry are you here?” A pale hand waved in front of his face as his eyes refocused to the two people in front of him rather than back to the memory of a certain redhead.

“Huh, oh hi. Yes I’m here. Just got lost there for a few seconds,” Harry mumbled as he rubbed his hands against his face.

“Few minutes more like it. Are we done for the day or do you want to look around more?” Pansy asked him gently. The day had been long and Harry didn’t know if he had anymore decision-making left in him.

“I think we should call it a day. Thank you for all your help but I can take it from here, It’s just waiting in line anyway.” He also needed some time to process his day so far before having to go to Ron’s for dinner.

“It wasn’t a problem. I’d like to help out with your house, here’s my card call me anytime,” Pansy offered, holding out her card for Harry to take.

Keeping it in his wallet, he would make sure to call her before tomorrow afternoon. The sooner he finished working on his house, the sooner he would be able to host his friends after the breakup.

“Thanks Pansy! Listen, Draco I’ll call you in sometime. Thank you for sticking around. I had a lot of fun.” Harry grabbed Draco in a tight hug once again today, giving him a firm kiss on the cheek.

“If I didn’t let you know earlier, let me tell you now. You look like an absolute snack,” whispered Harry before finally letting go of Draco.

“Honey, I am a full sized _meal_ ,” Draco added, but not before pulling Harry in for a passionate yet soft kiss, letting Harry know exactly what he was going to miss once they were apart.

“That you are,” Harry chuckled as he returned Draco’s kiss with even more assurance than he had given Draco this morning.

“Can you two stop sucking face in the middle of a furniture store? Meet each other later in the privacy of your homes. Please and thank you.” Pansy made her exit even more dramatic by pulling Draco’s wrist towards the exit and out of Harry’s hands.

Of all the many trips he did have in the past month, this was Harry’s all time favourite.


	6. Super Trouper

By the end of Harry’s trip to Ikea, it had become a cold fall evening. He had almost forgotten the favour he promised Ron and Hermione had it not been for a call from Ron. 

“Hey mate, did you forget about us or were you busy doing nothing?” Ron asked with a chuckle, before Harry could even say hello on the phone. 

“I didn’t forget!” Harry (somewhat) lied. “And I was busy looking for furniture,” he added.

“Again? Whew, everyone there probably knows you by name, eh?” Ron joked. He wasn’t wrong though. Most of the staff stopped bothering Harry after he'd come in for the third time in the same week without buying anything.

“Let’s  _ not _ bring it up? I made a few decisions today. If you aren’t going to be proud of me, I will have to be proud of myself,” Harry said, trying his best to reassure himself. 

“Nah, mate. Always proud of your decisions. Even if you only stuck to one spell when trying to kill the devil of the Wizarding world.” Once Ron found out that the only spell Harry ever used to defeat Voldemort was a simple, second year “Expelliarmus” spell, he promised to never let him hear the end of it. Even more so because Fred wasn’t there to do it himself. 

“Har-dee-har. Please take my place the next time the magical world is under attack. Now, are we still on for dinner at your place in a half hour?”

“I certainly will, as Head Auror I probably have a better chance of defeating them anyway,” Ron bragged. He always tried his best to fit in his new title whenever he could, to which all Harry could do was roll his eyes frequently. “And yes. Dinner is still very much on. Please be on time. You know how Hermione gets when you aren’t.”

“Yes, Ron. I am aware. Don’t worry I shall be there once I load off my purchases. Good luck defeating any future threats we may have.”

“Thank you, I appreciate it.” With that, the two mutually cut their call and Harry stepped into his third taxi for the day.

Whenever Harry thought about Ron and Hermione, he was only reminded of what it was like being with Ginny. When they split up, Harry was unable to look Ron in the eye for so many weeks; afraid that he had disappointed his closest friend. In some ways, he still felt that way. Especially nowadays, when holidays were just around the corner and Harry was unsure of where he and Draco would stand in a few months, even more so now that he knows he might have to tell Draco the truth about his past soon. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t tell someone until after they were together for at  _ least _ a year but with Draco everything felt different, everything  _ was _ different - even Harry.

Times such as these, Harry was happy he had a friend like Hermione. She was the most rational of the three of them and had always been so. If anyone knew what to do, it would be Hermione. 

A stop at his house and a half an hour later, Harry found himself reaching the curb of Ron and Hermione’s home. Barely giving a second look at the meter, Harry passed a twenty pound note in the hands of the driver and hopped out of the car, walking towards the porch, excited to see the people he loved most in the world. 

Harry seemed to be so engrossed in the whirlwind of the thoughts about his future, he almost couldn’t hear Rose screaming with excitement as Ron called after her saying he was going to catch her. Hermione chided them for running inside the house. The sounds warmed his heart more than he could express. After everything they’d been through Harry was glad that the two of them could lead a normal life together. Harry couldn’t believe all of the little pleasures they had now, felt like a dream they wouldn’t ever have once upon a time. 

When he rang the doorbell, all the noise stopped and Harry almost felt bad until Ron opened the door with a bright smile and a two-year old Rose in his arms. 

“Harry! You finally made it. Come in.” Ron gestured as he walked back into his living room. On the other end of the room, was an exhausted Hermione from the looks of it. 

Harry walked towards her and gave her the tightest hug he could without crushing her belly. “Hi Hermione, how are you two?” 

Hermione sighed into the hug, “We are very tired. The last trimester is the most exhausting one. Leaving that aside, we just finished making dinner, so you are right on time.” Letting go, she continued, "Help me set up?”

“Of course.” 

Harry followed her into the dining room, wondering how he would tell them about Draco. Today was the perfect day but Harry had always been terrible at bringing about important discussions, that was usually Hermione’s forte - and on occasion, Luna’s. 

After being part of many dinners at their home Harry knew exactly how to organise the table the way Hermione liked. Soon he placed the mats and plates almost robotically, his mind going in a million different directions that he barely heard Hermione call out to him until she tapped him on the shoulder.

In an instant, Harry was jolted back to reality and his focus was shifted to a confused Hermione who stared at him as if he’d grown two heads.

“I’ve been calling you for a few minutes now, Harry are you alright?” Hermione asked him worriedly. It was the look he hated the most, pity coming in second. 

Even then, Harry was unsure as to how to answer that question. He felt fine but he also felt emotionally  _ exhausted _ . Today had been a longer one than he had anticipated. Not a moment to himself, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to have a conversation anymore. Harry was growing irritable, in a way that only a goodnight’s sleep would fix but leaving Ron and Hermione wasn’t an option. He would just have to keep at it for a few more hours. Even though the mattress back home wasn’t the most comfortable, it was all he could think about in the moment. 

Placing the last set of cutlery on the table, Harry half-heartedly answered her question, “I’m fine, had an extremely long day. Could I get some coffee? I think that might help me feel a little better,” he asked her. Throwing her off was his best bet at the moment. Until he had some food and caffeine in his system, Harry didn’t think he could answer any questions Hermione threw at him. 

“Of course, Harry. In the meantime, sit in the living room. Ron and Rose are probably causing a ruckus anyway.” 

She wasn’t wrong, their noise was the only thing filling every corner of the house. When Harry reached closer to the hall, it sounded like a faraway dream to him, almost as if he were looking at them through a foggy lens. His thoughts were interrupted by Rose, who grabbed his leg, unwilling to let go.

“And how have you been, Rose?” Harry asked as he picked her up. He was the first person after Ron to see Rose when she was born. Holding her had been so emotional for Harry that even though he and Ginny were in the early years of their relationship, he'd wanted to have the talk about having a family with her. She wasn’t as reciprocative as he'd hoped and eventually the conversation had just come to a halt. So, Harry simply put all of his paternal instincts into caring for Rose whenever Ron and Hermione got stuck at work for too long. 

“Rose, good!” she replied excitedly. Ron caressed her head fondly as Harry laughed at her response.

“What about you, Ron? Excited about the new baby?”

“Very much so. Mum’s probably more excited than I am though, likely got started on her knitting too. Rose already has one sweater too many. Thank Merlin for Hermione’s knowledge of Extension Charms.” Ron replied with earnesty.

With Hermione having an important position in the Ministry of Magic, the use of strictly controlled spells such as Extension Charms were more restricted but Hermione often bent the rules she deemed unnecessary and which was why she had a bigger house than it seemed from the outside. 

“You underestimate Molly, she’s most likely already finished knitting everyone’s sweaters and is now starting on her second round of presents.” Harry remarked. The two laughed at the sheer possibility of that happening.

“Harry’s right you know,” Hermione added, taking Rose away from Harry’s arms as she handed his coffee to him. “The only thing that would derail her present plans is if someone brought in a serious partner and we all know that’s unlikely to happen.” Harry went quiet at this, he wasn’t going to add anything that would lead to further questions. At least not before they all finished dinner. 

“Let’s continue this conversation after we’ve got some food in us? I’m famished!” Ron might have gotten married and had children, but his appetite remained the same. 

The four of them headed to the dining room where a small platter awaited them, every dish complimenting perfectly against the wooden table from the golden brown chicken to the tomato and feta salad. As if in unison, Harry’s mouth salivated as his stomach growled and he was reminded of his lack of meals throughout the day. 

Harry and Hermione settled themselves as Ron adjusted Rose in her high chair before sitting down himself. 

“Hermione, this looks absolutely delicious. Makes me miss your cooking even more.” If Draco ever moved in, he would never try to cook again, thought Harry. 

“Why thank you, Harry. You know you’re welcome anytime for a meal, we don’t even live that far from each other anymore.” 

Ron nodded his head in agreement as he had already begun stuffing his face. Taking that as a green signal to start eating, Harry began piling food onto his plate as well. 

For a few minutes, the dining room echoed with sounds of forks and knives clattering against plates rather than sounds of light conversation. The silence was more charged than awkward, although Harry could tell that Hermione was holding back from saying something Harry wouldn’t like.

Deciding that voicing his thoughts was better than mulling his own around, Harry cleared his throat. “Ahem. Hermione, is there something you’d like to say? It seems as though you’re holding back,” he said, then proceeded to continue eating his dinner as Hermione deeply exhaled and took a pause from hers. 

“Not holding back, just waiting for the right moment to discuss what has been on my mind.” 

Taking it as a win, Harry victoriously replied, “Aha! So I was right. What’s going on?”

“I don’t know how to put this gently but you need to start taking charge of your  _ life _ Harry. It’s been five months since you and Ginny broke up and you’ve barely tried putting your life back together. I’m not worried but I also don’t know how to help you since you don’t seem to want it either.” Hermione sounded frustrated and seemingly upset at Harry’s recent behaviour. If he was being honest he was beginning to wonder when she would bring this up. 

For a few months, Harry had been crashing at different friend’s houses, most frequently, Ron and Hermione’s. Up until two months ago that was, when Harry promised them to see a mind-healer and showed them his new apartment. Since that was the last update he had given them, he understood where Hermione’s frustration was coming from. She didn’t know about the progress he'd made, however small, or about his recent job application decision. In recent years, Harry would pin the best decision he made on seeing a mind-healer, without Elena, he probably would still be down in the dumps about Ginny. And more specifically, he wouldn’t have met Draco. 

Something in Harry stirred, he wanted to get angry at Hermione; yell at her for not keeping in touch with him and putting some effort in but the second he was going to tell her off, Elena’s voice asking him to reevaluate his anger echoed in his head. Deciding that it would be better to listen to it rather than ignore the voice, Harry took a pause and practiced a cycle of deep breaths. 

“I know we haven’t been in touch and that it probably took a lot of effort for you to bring this up. However, I promise you, that I am definitely ‘taking charge of my life’ as you so eloquently put it. Still seeing that mind-healer, she’s wonderful, and I put in a job application for Ikea today, in fact. And I even met someone I really like. You may think it is too soon, but I know that you especially would love him.” 

Ron and Hermione raised their eyebrows at Harry’s declarations. He’d never openly discussed his attraction to men with them but Harry didn’t think he ever had to. It was pretty obvious whenever they went out for drinks and he never objected to flirty comments from the same sex. 

“That’s wonderful to hear Harry! I’m sorry we haven’t kept in touch, Ron’s been so busy and with the baby coming, I’m surprised I even remember to shower.” They all quietly snickered. “But I promise you it wasn’t intentional. I’m so happy to see you doing so well. Now, tell us, who is this person I would love?” 

Harry could tell they were intrigued, he liked that they didn’t focus on or question his preferences. 

“So, we met at Ikea, he thought I worked there and asked me where the mugs were. I told him I didn’t know but I did know where to find my phone number. Really terrible, I know. But surprisingly, it worked! We strangely bumped into each other once again at the checkout counter and decided we should just get drinks instead. Suffice to say, neither of us bought anything that day.” 

Harry paused to clean a few bites from his plate as Ron took second servings and Hermione fed some food to Rose as well.

“Once we were slightly buzzed rather than drunk, we realised that we didn’t want to stop spending time with each other and decided to spend the night at his house instead. Soon after, we’re fully clothed sitting on his bed and looking at the ceiling as if they had bloody stars on them and just start laughing. Fully unprompted but it ended up being one of the highlights of my day.”After dinner, they kept talking about Harry's weekend with Draco.

For him, it almost felt like old times when it was just the three of them against the Wizarding world. Sometimes, Harry wished he could go back with the knowledge he had today. As for the present, Harry was happy he ended up here however he did. When it was time to clear up the table and clean up in the kitchen, Harry helped alongside Hermione, continuing the story as Ron put Rose to bed, telling her all about what happened today and the progress he seemed to have made with the mind-healer. He even mentioned the air of intensity that Draco’s friend Pansy came with and how she helped him choose a few pieces for his house since she was an interior designer. Hermione prompted him with some light-hearted questions but Harry could tell she was waiting until the very end to ask the ones he most dreaded. 

Even Ron had few words to say. He wasn’t often a vocal person even so, Harry could tell how happy he was for him from the smile that sat on his face all through Harry’s stories. The excitement he had felt in the morning when talking to Elena, returned with full force when he spoke about Draco and Harry could feel a similar smile plastered on his face throughout as well. 

“That certainly sounds like an eventful week,” chimed Ron. Apart from that there were no more comments from him and Harry worried. Ron wasn’t the kind to give up an opportunity to fill a conversation with sarcasm, something was causing him distress only Harry couldn’t point his finger to what it was. 

“You remember how when we were in Hogwarts, we had to tackle a new problem or be part of one every day? Not one moment was monotonous.”

“Apart from Trelawney’s Divination classes, that is,” Hermione sarcastically added before Harry could continue. They all nodded in agreement. 

“Yes, apart from those. We had something to drive us out of our rooms everyday, even on the bad days, we had each other. The days have passed by so quickly, I’ve lost track of them and I think this was the first week where no day was like the previous one. Draco was a huge part of that. Moreover, with how busy the two of you have been, I didn’t want to intrude.” Before Hermione could disagree with him, Harry held a hand up, pleading to let him finish. 

“No, Hermione. You two have been busy and I completely understand that. Spending time with myself and actually liking it is something I need to learn to do. Strangely enough, just as I was starting to be comfortable with being alone, Draco popped up and now I’m here throwing all caution to the wind. What am I even doing? How is it, that with every rational thought I have about him, my brain conjures up five reasons why it's irrational to have that doubt?” Harry wondered out loud. it was the question that plagued him all morning but had somehow forgotten to ask Elena. 

Hermione walked towards Harry and rested one arm on his shoulder while the other lifted his face. Looking intently into his eyes, she said the words Harry refused to let his mind even think of: “You’re in love, Harry.” 

Hermione looked at him with such intensity, Harry hadn’t even registered the statement she made until he absentmindedly took a step back.

He sputtered in disbelief. “Love? I’ve known him for three days! No one falls in love in three days; I don’t even believe in love at first sight! No, you’re wrong.” Dismissing her was the best strategy to follow until he was able to process what Hermione was saying. But of course, Hermione loved tackling difficult problems head on rather than to leave them for later.

“I think I agree with ‘Mione on this one Harry. I mean what else could it be?” Ron added, evidently jumping on the “in love” bandwagon. 

Unable to give him an answer, Harry brazenly rolled his eyes at their ludicrous statements. Sure they had been happily married for five years now but they knew nothing, especially since it took them six years to even realise the other was a potential romantic interest.

Harry rubbed his face, trying to make sense of what they were saying. “How is that even possible, though? We don’t know anyone who fell in love in the span of a few days. All of our friends with relationships studied with us, we didn’t branch out! Why didn’t we branch out?!” Suffice to say, Harry wasn’t prepared to have intense feelings about someone, feelings? Yes. Intense, never want to have another relationship feelings? Never in a million years. 

“We’re wizards, you didn’t know we existed until you were eleven. According to Muggles and their ‘laws of physics,’ our existence is supposed to be impossible. You really think something like falling in love in the span of three days rather than three months, is impossible? Come off it, Harry.” Ron shared his thoughts, bumping his shoulder with Harry’s. 

“That’s another problem! We like each other now, but he’s a Muggle. What if he leaves me and doesn’t ever come back? Can you imagine what everyone is going to say? The Prophet would have a field day.” This time, Ron and Hermione simultaneously rolled their eyes. 

“Except for Ron in fourth year, when have any of us cared what the Prophet has said? Or the opinions of anyone else?” Hermione wisely added, Harry couldn’t disagree with that. 

Since Harry and Ginny had broken up, the Prophet hadn’t paid much attention to him but that was subject to change if Harry decided to tell Draco and they went public, provided Draco still wanted to be with him. 

“Not only that but there are many Muggle/Wizard relationships. Couples don’t usually make it public but everyone knows they exist. Although, you would probably be the first famous wizard to have such a relationship in a long time. Doesn’t mean it’s uncommon. So that can’t be your biggest worry. If Draco’s reaction is what you’re worrying about, all I can say is that you can’t predict what his reaction is going to be.”

“Thanks Ron, that’s helpful.” Harry interrupted. 

“Let me finish. You can’t predict what it’ll be but if something as magical as being a wizard is what drives him away, he wasn’t worth it after all. Now if he left you because of your organisational skills, that’s a whole other story. One that I wouldn’t blame him for!” At that, Harry threw the washcloth next to him at Ron while Hermione laughed in agreement with Ron. 

“Oi! We clean dishes with that!”

Harry simply shrugged before walking over to Ron and loosely hugging him, silently thanking him for all that he said. 

“Look, no matter what comes out of this, we’re just happy that you are happy right now. If the moments are magical now, the relationship is magical too. Now that we are as invested in this, frequent updates are mandatory Harry!” Hermione added wisely. 

He walked up to Hermione to give her a hug as well, his friends always knew exactly what to say. A gift he hoped he had as well, though he doubted it. 

“Of course, who else would I talk to about this? However, it is getting late, so I'll take my leave.” As much as Harry was happy to have finally caught up with them, he was also plenty tired and the large meal they had certainly didn’t help with keeping him awake.

“You’re right, I didn’t even realise how late it’d gotten. Ron and I have an early morning tomorrow but let’s meet on Friday?” 

Harry always liked when Hermione immediately set out to make plans, and how she always followed through with them. It was one of the many things he admired about her. 

“That works! Ron, can you walk me out? Don’t feel like taking the floo today.” Harry was adamant to know what was going on with Ron before he left, even if he wasn’t sure that Ron would reciprocate.

Harry was met with some hesitation before Ron quickly gave in. “Uh, sure Harry.”

Once again, that night, Harry walked through the living room that was once his living space. Everyday he seemed to realise how much further he had come from the identity of “The Boy Who Lived”. 

Unsure of how he should bring up his worries about Ron, Harry started with a simple, “How have you been doing, Ron? I know back inside it was mostly me giving the two of you updates but I’d like to know how you are.”

Visibly, Ron held back, replying, “It’s been alright, mostly busy. You know how it is around the holidays.”

Harry was prepared to probe him with more questions since it wasn’t possible for Ron to open up only to an ambiguous, “how are you”. 

“I know how busy it gets closer to the holidays which is why I’m asking. You seemed quieter than usual. What’s been bugging you?” he asked earnestly. If Ron was able to clear some of his anxiety with a few words, Harry wanted to try and return the favour any way he could.

Ron rested on the wall near the Apparition point. Harry followed, listening intently to what he was saying. 

“It’s really nothing. Being the Head Auror comes with a great paycheck but being around those cases every single day and not being able to go out into the field whenever I want is what I hate most about doing this job. Especially when I see fewer and fewer familiar faces every day. And it’s now going to be another round of holidays and birthdays without Fred around. I don’t know if I can get through another tearful toast from Mum. Hey, at least you’ll be there with your new relationship to take the load off and if the baby comes by then, it’ll be a two for one deal, eh?” Ron chuckled as did Harry. He did feel for Ron, however, it wasn’t easy being an Auror much less one that handled so many people at once. It was a big reason as to why Harry had given up the Auror dream soon after Hogwarts. 

“It will be if he still wants to be with me by then, who knows?” 

Both of them nihilistically laughed at that. The uncertainty of the future might have made Harry anxious but it also set a fire in his belly, one that made him want to do whatever it took to bring Draco with him into the future. Of this, he was sure. 

“And if being part of the Auror team is showing to be so stressful, why don’t you save up some money over the next few paychecks and quit? Work at the joke shop with George! He could use the company and last time I checked, he seemed to be doing quite well from himself, right?” 

Harry had never even thought about the idea, but the second he said it out, it truly sounded like the better choice of the two. 

Ron sighed in disbelief. “Harry I can’t do that! No matter how well George is doing, I don’t think Hermione would be up for the idea. She’s been swamped at work as well, the Ministry barely even gave her maternity leave.” 

Harry bounced in excitement and before Ron could contradict any more of what Harry said, he continued, “See Ron! That’s the thing, you can choose your own hours! It probably isn’t busy through the evenings so you wouldn’t even have to hire a babysitter. I seriously think you should take it into consideration, I’m sure George would love the company as well and you could see your family more often too. Being an Auror is extremely difficult, and for us, exceedingly traumatic as well. I wouldn’t want Hermione to have double the worry once the baby comes. Now you don’t have to take what I’m saying into account, but I do think you should tell ‘Mione about it before you make any decisions.” 

Harry bumped his shoulder into Ron’s when he was done. There wasn’t much Harry could do to change Ron’s mind but if he was honest, Harry would much rather see him living a happier life than be reminded of the most dangerous and often terrible parts of their adolescence every time Ron went to work.

“I’ll think about it, thank you for suggesting the idea. In a way, I’m glad you didn’t pursue the Auror job. The Muggle world looks good on you.” 

Harry didn’t expect Ron to say something profound at the moment, but he agreed with him. The Muggle world seemed to be making up for all the years lost at the Dursleys and Hogwarts. It was suiting him more and more everyday. 

“I’m glad I didn’t either. Well, Hermione is probably wondering where you’ve been off to, so I’ll walk the rest of the way to the point. It’s not too far as it is.” 

Ron nodded in agreement, swiftly taking hold of Harry and hugging him. “Thank you, Harry.” 

He hugged Ron back. After a few moments, he pulled away and gave him a bright smile before walking in the direction of the Apparition point, which was now only a hundred meters away. 

The night was dark, the moon shone brightly against the ink blue sky. As stars guided Harry’s way, he thought back to the day he’d had and wondered how he could have ever gotten this lucky. Wishing he could go back to the night before his eleventh birthday and show ten-year old Harry a glimpse of how much better he was going to have it. Before he knew it, Harry had reached the Apparition point and soon, the entrance of his home. 

Unfurnished, unpainted and somewhat unwelcoming, it was still Harry’s home. It wasn’t all that unpainted in fact, there was an entire wall with thick stripes of different paints ranging from a terrible shade of ochre brown to a teal, mermaid blue that was pretty but not for him. In the few months he had this house, Harry had tried everything and one time it ended up looking decent almost. Until, he realised he had made a practical replica of the Gryffindor common room and needed to change it  _ immediately _ . Which brought him here, back to square one. 

It was the worst possible time for Harry to be spiralling about a house he could do nothing about at the current time, and so he wandlessly vanished all his clothes, apart from his underwear, and flopped onto his single mattress. Another long day seemed to be around the corner and Harry wanted to be his most prepared for it and decided that sleeping as soon as possible was the best way to do so. Shortly after, he was snoring into the next day. 


	7. Inside Your Mind

When the morning came in, Harry asked it to go away and accepting his request, the morning went. The afternoon said hello and Harry jumped out of bed when he realised how late it’d gotten.

Making a cup of tea was his first priority, brushing his teeth and calling Pansy tied for second in priority. Once done, Harry wondered what he could do to pass the time away since it was going to be a few days before he received any information about his job application. His best bet would’ve been to assemble the items he had bought from Ikea. Deciding this was the perfect plan, he called Pansy and while he was waiting for her to pick up, Harry unpacked all the products from the brown paper bags.

“Hello? Who is this?” Pansy’s voice sounded almost groggy as if she had just woken up from her sleep as well.

“Hi, Pansy. It’s Harry. Did I disturb you?” He could hear the shuffling of sheets before he heard Pansy answer his question. 

“No, you didn’t disturb me. Can I help you with something?” she asked him with her professional voice. If Harry hadn’t called her, he would have likely mistaken her for an automated voice machine.

“Yeah, I wanted to ask you if you could make a quick stop to my house this afternoon? Just to have an idea, or even give me one, with how to go about designing the house.” Harry would normally be extremely nervous to make a call such as this but with how vocal and helpful Pansy had been yesterday, he was almost nervous to see what she had to say.

While waiting for her response Harry started unpacking the Ikea bags, starting with his lamp first. 

“I think I can fit that in, do you mind if I bring Draco? Or would you prefer just me alone?” 

Harry paused everything he was doing, seeing Draco this soon, especially after the conversation he’d had with Ron and Hermione yesterday, was nerve wracking but also exciting. What would he say? Would Draco judge his house? Well that was an easy answer actually; he definitely would. Having Draco would make him happier than not. He certainly wasn’t getting tired of him anytime soon.

“I don’t mind Draco coming!” Harry tried to hide the enthusiasm in his voice but failed.

Pansy laughed absentmindedly. “Of course you wouldn’t mind, why did I even bother asking?” Even though Harry knew she couldn’t see him, he lazily shrugged while she continued, “Can we come around five in the evening?”

“Five works perfectly! Thank you for offering to help Pansy. Means a lot.” 

Harry was grateful that he met Pansy at this time, hopefully she could make something of the home he was unable to do anything with.

“No problem, Harry. Business is a little slow this week anyway. And any person that can manage to make Draco this happy, is a friend of mine.” 

Harry beamed at her statement, it was difficult for him to not jump up and down right there.

Happily, Harry replied, “And any friend of Draco’s, is one of mine. Wonderful, can’t wait to meet then!”

“See you, Harry.” Pansy replied.

“See you.” Cutting the call, Harry went back to unboxing his lamp, bulbs and twinkle lights. 

~~~

Draco had woken up that morning with the brightest smile he’d ever had. And a blasting headache. He and Pansy had decided to have a late night yesterday since she was unable to wait longer to hear more about Harry. Even after spending much of the afternoon with him, she wanted to know all the things Draco couldn’t have said around Harry. Like how much he liked him; what his favourite thing was about him; where he saw this going. By the end of the night, Pansy had pretty much approved of Harry and vowed to take a few tests of her own before she could write her approval off. All of which, Draco was completely in favour of. 

Having had too much to drink to go to their homes separately, both of them decided that Pansy sleeping at Draco’s house would be their best bet since it was closest to the pub they were at. This just meant that Draco would have to make two servings of breakfast again, but because of how tired he was, porridge was his best and quickest option.

Rubbing his eyes to wake himself up, Draco could tell by looking outside his window that he had slept in much longer than he intended to, which already put his day on the wrong start. Wincing at the cold floor beneath his feet, Draco quickly padded to the bathroom ready to wash his face and brush his teeth, hoping he could turn the rest of his day around. 

Walking into the living room, he found a sleeping Pansy drooling on his cotton cushions and splayed out on his couch in the most unflattering way, something only Draco was privileged to see. Resolving to wake her up only once breakfast was ready, he went into the kitchen and switched on the stove to heat up some oats and milk. While the stove did its magic, Draco used that time to store all the groceries he’d bought home yesterday into the pantry cupboard. If his kitchen wasn’t sorted, he wasn’t. 

After Draco and Nicolas broke up and drinking his feelings away got bad for his health, Draco found solace in cleaning and learning new recipes. They were two activities he realised would get him to become a better version of himself and wallowing away was doing nothing good. So, these were the easiest activities to help shape him and his day. Deeply lost in his thoughts, Draco hadn’t even realised when Pansy started having a conversation, by the sound of it, on her phone. 

Alas, he only caught the end of the phone call and was unable to eavesdrop. Disappointed, Draco went to check on his porridge, slowly stirring cinnamon and honey, hoping that if he acted nonchalant enough Pansy would tell him who she was talking to. 

‘Could it be Harry? He did mention calling her today for help with his home,’ Draco thought to himself, immediately dismissing the thought, knowing that optimism wasn’t a good colour on him. 

Before he could convince himself any further, Pansy walked in, making herself coffee and moving around as if it was her own home. Which more often than not, it was. 

Trying his best to sound unconcerned, Draco chatted her up, “Who was that on the phone? Business call?”

Pansy offhandedly smiled, “Sort of. Harry called, said he wanted to meet me today.”

“Oh? What did you say?” 

Pansy knew what Draco was getting at yet he pretended she didn’t.

“I said I would, of course. What else could I say? Also mentioned that you’d be coming along as well, so you’re welcome for making your day.”

“Oh, sure. It’s not like I have anything else planned,.” He didn’t, but Pansy didn’t have to know how happy he felt about the arrangement she made.

“You don’t.” Unwilling to continue the conversation, Pansy changed the subject, “What you got cooking there? It smells like the breakfast Narcissa used to give us when we slept in too late. Which for her was two minutes past eight o’clock.”

Draco laughed in nostalgia. “It is that breakfast. Only nicer, I top it off with nuts and fruits. All Dobbes, our butler, did was make it with milk and sugar.” 

Pansy walked behind him, the coffee mug she kept in his house at all times in her hand. “Right, no wonder I’ve stayed away from it ever since. Well, let’s see how you’ve turned it around. In the meantime, I will be using your loo.”

“You’re going to love it. Freshen up soon, don’t want it getting cold!” A grunt from Pansy and Draco was left alone to mull in his thoughts yet again. 

When it came to Harry, Draco didn’t know what steps were too soon and where their boundaries lay. It’s like Harry had come into his life only to make him more confused and to never want to be with anyone else. If Draco had to think about it, the only way this relationship would not work out is if Harry cheated on him or lied to him. Even then, if the latter were to happen Draco didn’t know if he’d be able to be angry at him for long, Harry simply checked too many of his boxes for Draco to just  _ let him go _ . 

Before he could daydream for too long, Draco got back in the swing of making his breakfast. Chopping walnuts, scooping porridge into bowls and pouring cold fruit onto the porridge, all in a comfortable rhythm. Often he wondered what it would be like working in a professional kitchen, most likely extremely stressful which Draco definitely wouldn’t have been able to handle. Soon enough, breakfast was ready and Pansy sat waiting at the dining table flipping through a tabloid magazine. It was the guilty pleasure “literature” Draco kept around. 

“I see you’ve made yourself at home. Helping your friends isn’t exactly your forte is it?” Draco asked, as he carried warm bowls and two mugs towards the table. 

“I can be helpful! Just not right now. The food looks good!” Pansy was at her laziest right before and right after she slept so Draco expecting her to be helpful was pointless. 

Setting down their food, they settled into a comfortable seat. 

“It tastes great, too. Now, do you have anything to do before we go to Harry’s house? In case we have to leave soon.” Draco asked, knowing he would take longer to get ready if he was going to be visiting Harry. 

“Yeah, I’ll have to get some paint samples. Would you have any blank notebooks? I wouldn’t want to buy a new one unnecessarily.” Pansy asked him.

Draco chuckled at this, “I have more than a few, the collection hasn’t stopped growing since you bought me that navy blue moleskin from your visit to Italy. Alright then let’s leave in an hour?” 

Pansy half-heartedly agreed, choosing instead to focus on the rest of her meal. Draco soon did the same.

In the following hour of finishing up their meal, Draco washed the pans and bowls he used to make breakfast while Pansy dried them off and put them in their rightful places. Then he washed up, got ready, and spent the rest of his time waiting for Pansy. How the rest of his day would go was unknown but Draco was excited to have a hand in designing Harry’s home. What else was there left for Harry to do to let him know he belonged with him? Especially since he didn’t seem to have a problem asking for Draco’s company when shopping at Ikea or allowing him to be there at his house this afternoon. Unlike two days ago, feeling like he belonged was the least of his problems. 

~~~~

Three hours later, Harry was back at square one. He thought he would spend time cleaning up but then realised there was barely any left to do since he didn’t exactly have hundreds of household items or dust filled rooms. While Harry waited for Pansy and Draco, he aimlessly walked around his house, imagining what the walls would look like when they would finally be lit with paint and laughter. Harry knew he would do anything to make this the home he dreamed of as a child stuck in a cupboard the size of a shoebox. 

Walking back and forth from his room to the guest room, Harry collected anything and everything that belonged to “Harry the Wizard” and hid it under the invisibility cloak in his wardrobe. Once he reached his half furnished kitchen, all he could see was the sheer emptiness of it aside from the few drawer organisers and spoons that came with the house along with wooden countertops, a squared glass table, and a rusty metal chair. When he thought about it, his best bet would be to refurbish all the items he wouldn’t have used otherwise, into things that he would. However, since he had little knowledge of  _ how  _ to do that, Harry was counting on Pansy’s help now. 

Just as he thought of her, the sounds of incessant knocking began on Harry’s front door. 

Hoping to stop the noise, even before Harry had reached the door, he began shouting, “I’m coming! Wait a minute!”

Straightening his shirt out, Harry tried to make himself look less unruly than he was, to no avail. 

After taking a long preparatory breath, Harry opened the door with a cheerful smile and was greeted with a short, “That’s what she said,” from Pansy and a snicker from Draco. 

Choosing to ignore her comment, Harry went on pretending as if he hadn’t heard it. “Hello Pansy, Draco.” Harry greeted them and gestured towards the inside of his house. “Welcome to my empty abode. By all means, make yourself comfortable. I have many walls to lean on, a chair and one mattress, should you wish to sit closer to Hell. Wait a minute, how did you come up? I didn’t hear or answer the buzzer.” 

“Oh, it was broken so the security guard let us in when we told him we were visiting you. Seemed surprised that you had people over. I’m not surprised,” Pansy commented as she chose to lean in front of the wall with the most amount of paint, facing all the colours at once. Whereas Draco chose the more predictable, mattress option to sit on. Even as low to the ground as he was, Draco’s posture was impeccable and Harry did everything short of drooling to restrain himself from making out with Draco right there. His black jeans and matching boots paired with a mustard yellow, green, and maroon striped button up - ironically three of the four Hogwarts house colours. The gold chain that dangled from his neck was the first thing Harry wanted to rip off the second he got the chance. 

His thoughts must have appeared on his face for Pansy audibly cleared her throat after a few very long seconds of Harry and Draco intently staring at each other, not saying a word. 

Blinking his thoughts away, Harry stood up taller and faced Pansy. Today, he was more than ready to get into work mode. 

“So, Harry can you please explain to me what the fuck you have done with your walls? It looks like it went through an identity crisis!” 

Harry could only wonder how Pansy managed to sound so threatening, yet polite at the same time. He needed to learn the skill when he could, it would likely come in handy with the Prophet. 

Trying his best to explain his process and not sound like a complete idiot, Harry answered, “Well, for the first few weeks after I moved into this house, I was pretty attached to maroon then realised how much I absolutely hated it. So, a few weeks later, when I had the time, I tried to see if I liked an aquamarine blue more, and hated that too. Pretty much went through most of the colours I considered decent, except for the one ochre brown I painted on a drunk whim - so I wouldn’t count that. Eventually I either got too lazy or too busy to paint over it and now, here we are.” 

“Well, Harry, I won’t say I’m not disappointed. By your clothes I assumed you had a little more done but it’s fine, what else am I here for?” Pansy clapped her hands at the end of her sentence, assuring all of the attention was on her.

“Now here is what we are going to do; Harry, you’re going to list the importance of each room, which one you’d like done first and which last. Draco, you are on space duty, check out all the rooms and give me an idea of what you think would go best where and tape the paint swatches you think would look nice in each room. I will be making rough sketches of your house, Harry and trying to visually place all the items in each room, so that we can all get a better idea of how we’ll be doing this. Any questions?” 

With the way Pansy commanded a room, Harry would bet his life savings that she would have been a Slytherin, but he was glad she wasn’t because it meant that they wouldn’t have been friends. Or acquaintances. Harry still wasn’t sure where he stood with her. 

Harry scratched the back of his head. He had one question but he wasn’t sure how it would be received. “Can I invite some of my friends, and possibly their kid? I would love their input too.”

“It’s your house, Harry! I would probably get a better idea of your personality too since more people would help me get an idea of what you’re like when immersed in your comfort zone,” Pansy replied and quickly walked off to do her own work. If Harry was being honest, Pansy’s answer unquestionably surprised him but in a way that he didn’t mind at all.

The setting was the perfect time for Ron, Hermione, and Luna to meet Draco without making it seem too obvious. Harry really would love their opinion on what his new home should look like, and possibly on Draco too. Who said Harry couldn’t be efficient?

Harry moved in the farthest corner of the household before making the call, so that he could warn them ahead of time in case of any non-Muggle conversations. 

“Hi, Hermione! Are you free right now?” Harry quietly whispered into his phone, hoping there wasn’t any sort of echo in the room. 

“Hello, Harry. I can be, why?” Hermione’s voice almost sounded suspicious.

“Well, I thought you’d want to discuss some ideas you might have for my new house? And possibly meet Draco?”

“ _ Oh _ ! Harry, I’d love to! Ron can probably shift his break to happen sooner. Can we bring Rose?”

“You can, but Hermione! There are Muggles here, what if she displays some accidental magic?” Harry whispered with caution, it was probably the biggest obstacle he would face today. Unless Luna accidentally mentioned Nargles, Wrackspurts, or her newest discoveries. 

“We’ll keep a watch on her. Can we see you in an hour, then?” Hermione’s word was the best Harry could depend on, under the circumstances. 

“Yeah, an hour would be perfect. See you if you can bring some takeout, maybe? Bye Hermione!” Harry cut the phone at that. Now, onto Luna. From all of his friends, Harry was unsure if she would be the person Draco least got along with. For now, he simply hoped for the best.

“Afternoon, Harry. How’s the necklace? Keeping the Nargles away?” 

Harry couldn’t tell her that he had kept the necklace in his room, away from his neck. At least, now he would remember to wear it before she came around. 

“Uh, I haven’t checked Luna. But I wanted to ask you if you’d like to visit my apartment today? I’m planning to do some interior decorating and would love your opinion.” 

All said and done, Luna was as good of a friend to Harry as Dean or Seamus were and she probably had some beautiful charms that would really brighten the place up.

Her dreamy voice replied in an instant. “That would be lovely, Harry. I could come right away, if you’d like.” 

“Oh, that’s fine, Luna. But an hour would be better, that way you, Ron and Hermione will all be here at the same time. But I should inform you, there will be Muggles around so could you keep the wizard conversations to a minimum?” Harry requested.

“Of course, Harry. Don’t worry about me, I cannot promise that the Wrackspurts will keep away, however,” Luna replied in her ever so fanatical imagination.

“I’ll let you handle them, since you’re obviously the expert here. Don’t be late!” Harry knew he didn’t have to say that since Luna was usually the most punctual out of the group.

“I won’t be. Goodbye Harry!” 

With a click, his afternoon was properly planned. Harry had too good of a feeling about the rest of his day.

——

One of Draco’s favourite things to do when he visited people’s homes was to deduce the kind of characters they were like when left to their own devices. Paint colours said a lot more about a person than most thought. However, with Harry’s empty rooms, all Draco could tell was that Harry wasn’t someone who paid a lot of attention to detail. Slowly, he was going to try and change that. 

Luckily, Pansy had practically taken all the free sample swatches she could carry and Draco now ended up with multiple options to choose from. This was a good and bad thing for his indecision. Good, because he knew exactly what he did not like from the pile. Bad, because now he had to choose between all of his favourites. Too many colours without any balance in one room would be a catastrophe. Hopefully, Pansy agreed with his choices and they could get started on designing Harry’s home soon.

Draco leaned against the entrance door of Harry’s room. He could tell it was Harry’s by the way the clothes were kept in a haphazard pile in his wardrobe which Draco could clearly see through the crack of the open closet door. It was taking Draco a lot of restraint to not look through Harry’s room, trying to find pieces of him tossed around and so, he began sketching out the room to distract himself from his thoughts. 

Before he knew it, Draco had absentmindedly sketched out, not only what the room would look like with some furniture, but also what a half-naked Harry would look like if Draco were to find him stretching across from him. Pansy would likely ridicule him for the drawing, so Draco began drawing another version and simply tore off his first drawing and kept it in his pocket instead. Within twenty minutes Draco had two sketches of the rooms ready to be fixated upon by Pansy.

Draco walked out of the room and found Pansy in work-mode hunched over the kitchen countertop, scribbling important details in her journal. 

Clearing his throat so as to not startle her, Draco waited for her to hear him. “Hey, I have the rough drawings ready. Where did Harry go?” Draco asked, looking around to see if he was in the living room unable to find him.

“Uh, I think he mentioned something about having to meet his friends downstairs. He has a couple of them coming over to help me with designing the place.” Even though Pansy’s voice was casual when mentioning this, Draco was the opposite as panic set in once he realised that he’d be meeting Harry’s  _ friends,  _ probably the most important people in his life apart from his family. 

Since Pansy was in her work-mode and could be quite a bitch when interrupted, Draco left the sketches next to her hand and went to pace around in circles in the living room. What if they asked him questions he wasn’t ready for? What if they hated him? What would happen if Draco was unable to make a good first impression? The voice of his mother rang loudly in his head as he panicked, telling him how important first impressions were, what they stood for. But these people weren’t the creme de la creme of the society, so how was he supposed to make a good impression that lasted? Be  _ himself _ ? That wouldn’t get him anywhere!

Unfortunately for Draco, he couldn’t come up with any solutions because the bell had rung, which meant that it was judgement time. And he was  _ not _ ready. Taking a deep breath, Draco swung the door open to Harry, three adults he had never met before, and a little girl. Draco relaxed his shoulders, at least he could make a good impression with her, he wasn’t terrible with children. 

“Hello all, you must be Harry’s friends. Welcome to the emptiest apartment in the city, also known as Harry’s home.” Draco got a good chuckle from everyone at that, feeling more confident, he moved out of the way to let them in. 

“Hi, you must be Draco. We’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Hermione,” the brunette said, extending her free hand to shake Draco’s. 

Draco shook her hand firmly, finally realising who she was. “Oh! I’ve heard quite a bit about you as well, Hermione. That must mean, you’re Ron, youngest of seven, right?”

Ron seemed a little confused, like he was unsure how Draco knew this information. “I am, yes. How’d you know?”

“Harry had mentioned it the other day! I’m sorry, but I don’t recognise you. What’s your name?” Draco directed his question at the pale, blonde-haired girl who stood next to Harry, quietly whispering to him. 

“Oh, hello Draco. My name is Luna,” Luna replied, hugging Draco in the process. Caught off guard, he stood still until she stepped back. She had a dream-like voice Draco noticed. She could probably hypnotise him and he would say thank you. 

“Hi Luna. And who is this little one here?” Draco asked, squatting down to meet her eye line. 

“I Rose!” she replied while poking her nose. 

Draco already liked her.

“You have a lovely name, Rose! My name is Draco.” Even though he felt a little silly doing it, Draco poked his nose too when he introduced himself. This induced laughter from Rose and he automatically felt less silly doing it. 

“‘Fank you Dwaco!” 

Rose was certainly the most adorable child Draco had ever met, she might now even be his favourite. 

Draco lightly laughed. “You’re very welcome, Rose. Would you like some water?” Now he wouldn’t say that he wanted to get out of the circle of attention with Harry’s friends but if Rose were to answer yes to his question, he would have gladly given her a hundred pounds. 

“Yes, pwease!” 

Breathing a quiet sigh of relief, Draco took her little hand and walked with her over to the kitchen just as Pansy came out.

“Getting intimidated?” Pansy asked haughtily.

“There’s so many of them!” Draco answered without screaming a loud yes. 

“Calm down, Draco. It’s only the three of them and they seem nice. Just breathe and be yourself, you  _ can _ be charming, it just overlaps with your no BS skills and comes off mean but I’m sure you’ll figure it out.” Pansy patted him on the shoulder before leaving to go and meet Harry’s friends. Whenever she tried to comfort Draco, it only made him more nervous. This time, however, she at least made some sense. For now, he’d focus on making a good impression on Rose. She was somehow the easiest yet most difficult one to talk to. 

~~~

Harry didn’t know what would happen if he put four of some of the most important people in his life with a new friend and Draco, both of whom were Muggles. He certainly couldn’t have predicted  _ this _ . 

In one corner of the room, Draco and Rose danced to the music on Harry’s crackled speakers, in another Ron and Hermione discussed the kind of person Harry used to be as a teenager, sharing stories, any stories that could be Muggle-fied with Pansy. Luna was no surprise though, she simply wandered off and circled through different rooms trying to find if any Wrackspurts or Heliopaths made Harry’s home their home as well. 

For a brief minute, Harry was able to see the kind of life he would have if Draco were to be part of it and if they started having Sunday suppers at his house once it was finally situated. Nothing made him happier than thinking how real that dream could be, how near it was, provided Draco didn’t leave him if he were to find out about who Harry truly was. Harry shook his head. He knew it was the worst possible time to think about his worst-case scenario, no matter how real it could become in the future. Things were wonderful  _ right now _ and he had to keep reminding himself that. 

He must have been completely out of focus for not realising how close Draco was standing next to him.

That is, until the hair on his arms stood up with the warm breath of Draco’s whisper near his ears muttering absolute nonsense that Harry almost didn’t catch the soft, “I bet you didn’t feel me lick your ear.” And suddenly Harry jerked back to reality and away from Draco.

His reaction must have been expected for everyone in the room burst into a fit of laughter. 

“I was bet by Hermione to whisper some nonsense in your ear and see if it would bring you back to reality or not.” Draco explained, “Pay up whatever-your-last-name-is.” He then went up to Hermione, collecting a five pound note with glee. 

“It’s Granger-Weasley,” Hermione helped.

“Hermione! What was the point of that? And isn’t five pounds a lot?” Harry asked. She never bet over four sickles even in something she believed in. This was more than ten times that. 

“I was feeling lucky, but I suppose Draco is better at this than I thought he would be.” Hermione shrugged to punctuate her statement.

“So, Harry, what did Draco say?” Ron chimed in, being the most unhelpful when Harry needed him the most.

Harry sighed in defeat, “I’m not sure you’ll want to hear this but I believe the exact words were-” Harry coveredRose’s ears before he told them, just because he was about to scar everyone it didn’t mean she had to succumb to that. “‘I bet you didn’t feel me lick your ear.” As soon as he said it out loud, everyone cringed, including Draco himself.

Pansy was the only one to say out loud what they all seemed to be thinking, “Draco! That’s so creepy!” 

Harry knew that if he had multiple pillows within arms reach, they’d surely all been thrown at him. Harry would have probably done the honours as well.

All Draco did was laugh. “You told me to say anything! So I did!”

Everyone reluctantly nodded in agreement. Before there could have been any awkward lulls, Pansy clapped her hands for the second time that day. It was simply one more clue for Harry that she would have been in Slytherin. At least now he could ask Ron, Hermione, and Luna to confirm his hypothesis too. 

“Alright, Ron, Hermione, and Harry come with me. I have a lot of questions and I need some input on some designs I’ve penned down. Draco I want you and Luna to come up with items that are important but could easily be missed, functional showpieces, clocks, stuff like that.” Pansy ordered in her professional-don’t-make-me-angry voice before bending down to Rose. “Rose, I would love your help as well! You can help me with the colours if you’d like?” 

Draco chose to quietly yet audibly comment, “Since when have you been this sweet?”. Pansy glared at him in reply while everyone else quietly snickered.

“Rose help Haee!” she cried out in excitement, jumping up and down. Rose was the life of the evening and she knew it.

Pansy smiled back at Rose’s reply and walked towards the kitchen where her notes and sketches laid. Harry picked Rose up and followed Pansy into the kitchen with Ron and Hermione in a tow. While he was a little worried about Draco and Luna spending all that time together, hopefully Luna would get along with him. If Harry didn’t know the two of them and he saw them outside, he would have definitely thought they were siblings. They looked too similar to not be and Harry didn’t know why he hadn’t noticed this earlier. 

“Alright, now before you all arrived, I had Draco sketch out some ways the rooms could be organised. So where the bed would be best placed, how his study would look best strategically. I personally looked at the living room and kitchen and came up with this. I even thought of some colours that would go well with different parts of the sketches. Give me your  _ honest _ opinion, since you two are Harry's oldest friends. I’d love to know what you think based on how these ideas would relate to Harry’s personality.” 

From his brief look at the sketches before Ron and Hermione took them, Harry could tell Pansy knew what she was doing and well. 

“Now, Harry. I know you said you weren’t particularly happy with emerald green being a big part of your interior so I have some wonderful ideas for the living room which involve the walls being a darker shade of green. Is that okay? It’ll make the space a lot more tasteful, trust me.” 

Harry wasn’t the most excited by what Pansy had to say but he supposed there were worse colours.

“I suppose. Hermione, Ron, what do you think? It won’t be too much like, ahem, someone else’s common room?” Almost immediately, they understood what Harry meant and he was thankful he didn’t have to spell it out for them.

“It might but we’ll make sure it looks much better than that. Green is not an extremely popular colour right now. We can spin that in our favour, I think. It’s also a colour that compliments your eyes, Harry,” Hermione chirped. 

She wasn’t wrong, some flea markets often put items ‘out of season colours’ at a lower price as did certain paint stores. Harry hadn’t even thought about how green was a part of him, one much bigger than a school-house he didn’t like. 

“Exactly! Thank you, Hermione. Paint is cheaper and we don’t have to spend anything on different flooring or a bigger carpet for your living room since the wooden flooring would actually match perfectly with the shade of green I have in mind. Not a lot of shades would go with your current colour either, Harry. Oh! I have the swatch colour too, one second.” 

Pansy flipped through the pile of coloured papers that Harry hadn’t noticed were there until just now.

“Ah! Here it is, colour number #1A5A3E for your exact reference should you need to buy any matching items.” When Pansy showed them the swatch Harry didn’t completely hate the colour. 

“That’s not too shabby. It’ll probably make your life look a lot more put together than it currently is, eh Harry?” Ron joked, but it was a thought that had already crossed Harry’s head. 

Harry laughed it off, “Ha, probably, Ron. Okay, Pansy, I think we can do that. I don’t know if I have time to be indecisive anymore as it is. What do you think, Rose? Do you like this colour?” It was now time to ask for the opinion that mattered to him the most, obviously.

“Rose, like gween!” 

The kitchen was filled with cheers. And it was set. Harry’s living room would be similar to the colour he seemed to have a lifelong connection to. 

“Okay, what do you have planned for the kitchen Pansy?” Hermione was good at getting straight at the point. Harry was glad he called her.

“Great question, Hermione. So the structure of your kitchen is a little odd Harry since there isn’t a door but rather a simple, open arch. My first question is, do you want a door or are you fine with an open kitchen?” Pansy asked.

“I really don’t mind an open kitchen, it’s one less thing to worry about. With the door I mean. But maybe we could put in drapes? I could see those working out, like maybe a white, translucent curtain?” It was an idea that popped into Harry’s head the second he realised he didn’t want a door but might want some privacy in case he decided to make surprise breakfasts for Draco. It seemed like the perfect solution.

“That’s actually pretty smart, Harry! We can totally do that, it’ll match the ideas I had for your kitchen too. Speaking of which, since your cupboards and countertops do look a little worn out, I thought we could re-do them. Revamp the wood and buff them to smooth down the surfaces. Additionally, if you’re okay with it, we could paint the cabinets a mustard yellow and have a few brown shelving cabinets for any cookbooks or mugs for a pop of colour. We could also wipe down that window-” Pansy continued by pointing her thumb towards the window that sat behind them near the sink- “and add curtains that match the ones we put on the kitchen entrance.”

Harry bit his lip, there was one thing he was still unsure of. “That sounds wonderful actually! Yellow is a nice colour, but won’t it get dirty easily? And by the sounds of it, all this refurbishing sounds expensive, I do have a bit of money saved up but I don’t know if it’ll be enough, especially with whether or not I’ll be getting that job anytime soon.”

Ron patted his shoulder in sympathy as Pansy tried her best to answer his worries. “I’ll try to make this as affordable as possible, Harry. I’ve had a lot of clients with similar situations, so don’t worry we can definitely do the whole house in under four to five thousand, if we know the right people. Which I do. You’ll be fine.”

At Pansy’s promise, Harry visibly relaxed. The rest of the hour was spent going back and forth about what to do with his bedroom, it was the one thing he was still undecided on. So, Ron and Hermione took the reins over and by the end of it, Harry knew he couldn’t have come up with anything better for his room. Draco and Luna came and went many times through the hour, seemingly becoming better friends with each second. Luna brought out Draco’s curiosity, opening his mind to all the possibilities much like she did with Harry as well. Draco seemed to ground Luna a little, in the way that he wouldn’t want her to fly so far she didn’t know how to get back down. Or where down was. 

Harry now realised how much he must have underestimated Draco, in the way that made him think he was trying to find reasons to not be with Draco. Not getting along with his friends was a huge red flag for Harry, his friends were the biggest constants in his life. He would have given up whatever he needed to, to keep them in his life. Even this relationship but now he didn’t have to. Harry was terrified that Draco would leave him, just like Ginny did. Nonetheless, he had to be optimistic for the future, because the present was fantastic.

It was seven in the evening when everyone realised that they had been helping Harry out way too long and now needed to help themselves. To as many drinks as their responsibilities allowed them. For Ron and Hermione, that meant two. For Draco and Pansy, it meant at  _ least  _ five. For Harry, the rules were a little different. He was going to help himself to as many drinks as the bartender or his friends allowed him, whichever came first. And so, Harry, Pansy, Draco and Luna set out to find the nearest pub and reserve some seats until Ron and Hermione were able to call their neighbourhood babysitter and convince her to babysit Rose for a short while till they got back. Needless to say, the latter group had the most difficult task.

Luckily, the bar wasn’t packed on a weekday night, people thankfully had better things to do. The group of four were able to find a spot easily. Draco was not in the mood to be his usual, quiet self and instead proposed a game where Pansy and Luna guessed the kind of drink Harry and Draco would like, if they ended up liking it, they would pay for it. If they didn’t, Pansy or Luna would be dared to throw the drink in the face of the person they disliked most in the bar, and would have to pay for it as well. Since Draco and Pansy knew each other too well and Draco knew Harry well  _ enough _ , Pansy was paired with Harry and Luna with Draco. Too excited to wait for Ron and Hermione, the four promised to do another round once they arrived. 

However, this particular bar seemed to have been a double edged sword for it wasn’t packed so they would be able to get quicker service but because of the scarce amount of customers, there were fewer dirtbags to throw drinks at. If they had to of course. Pansy and Luna went towards the bar to get their respective drinks while Harry and Draco sat alone in the booth. 

“We haven’t gotten a minute alone, today. Have we?” Draco shook his head in reply. Under the dim lighting of their corner booth, Harry could barely make out where Draco’s bright glow began and where it ended. 

“Is it strange that I’ve missed you, even though we practically spent most of our day in the same room?” Draco asked, inching closer and closer to Harry’s face with each passing second. 

“Not at all, for I have as well.” Harry assured, just about closing the gap between him and Draco.

“How about a kiss?” Draco asked, even when he knew Harry’s answer.

In an effort to reply to him as soon as he could, Harry passionately held Draco’s face in his hands before meeting his lips with Draco’s, softly and intently. Draco’s hands spread across the warm surface of Harry’s back, exploring wherever he could, pausing only to cop a better feel at Harry’s abs. His touch made Harry shiver in the most vulnerable way possible and as their mouths pull and pushed against each other, fighting to meet each other in the middle, Harry’s hands did some exploring of their own, under Draco’s shirt, across his chest, all around his back as he drew circles all over eliciting a soft moan, the whisper of Harry’s name trapped between continuing to kiss him and groaning in the transaction of promises to give the other more if they did so as well. 

Before Harry could dip his hands any lower than he already had, he heard a loud “ _ahem_ ,” from Pansy and Luna who held Harry and Draco’s drinks. Flustering about and straightening themselves out, the aforementioned party settled in their seats with their heads hung low. Or, well at least Harry’s was. Draco sat proud in his seat, almost daring Pansy to say something. 

Unwilling to take the bait, Pansy simply sat down and Luna followed. 

Just as Pansy was going to tell them about the drinks she and Luna had picked, Harry’s phone rang loudly to the tunes of smooth jazz. Crossing over Draco, Harry went over to the other side of the room before he accepted the call. 

“Hey, Hermione, when will you be here?”

“Hi, Harry. I don’t think Ron and I will be able to make it. We couldn’t find a sitter and we certainly can’t leave Rose alone, what if she gets up to accidental magic? It’s getting pretty late as it is and we both have to go to work pretty early today. I’m so sorry Harry. How about some celebratory drinks on me once we’re done with your apartment?” Hermione offered, while he was disappointed, he understood the responsibilities they had to attend to. They were parents, and eventually that came ahead of spending time with friends. Hopefully, Harry thought, he’d know the feeling too, one day. 

“That’s alright, Hermione. I’m sure everyone will understand. Tell Ron, I’ll see him at my house tomorrow. We have lots of things to get done and whenever he is able to come over, I would love some of his help.” 

“Of course, Harry. Have fun. Oh! And thank you for talking to Ron,” Hermione added, Harry almost forgot why she was saying that and then remembered. He didn’t think Ron would bring it up this soon but Harry was glad he finally did. 

“No problem, ‘Mione, what else are friends for?” Harry cut the call and turned back to the table that was filled with his friends, and knew that his disappointment would be short-lived. 

“Okay, so they can’t make it. Were unable to get a sitter on such, short and immediate notice, which I suppose we would have known if we were parents.  _ However _ , I would love to see what you picked out Pansy. Now, Luna how do we know you didn’t help Pansy? Or vice versa?” If only Harry was able to use Veritaserum during times such as these. 

“I swear on McGonagall, neither of us helped each other.” Luna’s word was more than enough for Harry to believe her, especially when their favourite teacher was involved.

“Who's McGonagall?” Pansy asked in confusion.

“Oh, right. She was the Headmistress of our school up north in Scotland.” Harry replied, making sure he didn’t give her too much information but just enough that she wouldn’t look into it. 

“The best one we could have ever had, we think. Anyways, Harry and Draco, drink up! Tell us what you think.” Luna said excitedly. 

Harry’s drink smelled sweet with a hint of bright lemon, after taking a sip he was able to identify that the drink was definitely paired with a kind of scotch, he just didn’t know which one. It had a strong taste of lemon as well, Harry wouldn’t order this every time he went to a bar but he certainly liked the taste of the drink. It was a drink that he would have at a summer birthday party or beach day.

“Strong and surprising. What is this called?” Harry commented, not letting his true thoughts about the drink until he fully knew what went into the drink.

“A Lynchburg Lemonade. A little bit of lemon, some club soda, a little bit of triple sec and a whole lotta Tennessee scotch. Hence the sweet yet charcoal-like notes. Now, do you like it or not?” Pansy definitely knew what she was doing and loved getting straight to the point. It was only fair.

“I don’t know if I would order it again, but it’s pretty good. Reminds me of a perfect summer afternoon.” Harry answered honestly. 

Hoping to get the spotlight off of him, Harry asked Draco, “Why don’t you try your drink, Draco?”

“Oh. Yes, of course.” Draco took a long, hearty sip before setting the glass down. For a split second, Draco looked like he was in a trance, and just as quickly any signs of loving what Luna had got for him were gone. 

Eagerly waiting for a reaction, Luna asked Draco what he thought of it repeatedly until he finally gave in and told her that it was the best fucking drink he had ever had. As Luna and Pansy cheered in victory, Draco continued sipping on his drink. It seemed he was not ready to finish it just yet. Harry did the same, he would need to know what exactly Luna got made for Draco and would have to find out the recipe for his own drink as well. Even if he wouldn’t have it every single day, Harry knew a few people who would love it. 

“Well boys, pay up. We paid for the drinks already, eight pounds each.” It seemed that Luna and Pansy had become fast friends as well, for Luna almost sounded like her. Reluctantly, both of them took out their wallets and pressed the money into their grabby hands, which they gladly took. 

“Next round, we’re winning.” Draco challenged. The dim light made the glare he was giving Pansy even less threatening than usual. Harry thought that he almost looked like a small bunny.

And made the mistake of telling him so. “Draco, darling please don’t glare. You look like a cute, white bunny!” Draco’s eyes only got smaller at Harry’s statement but the flush of his cheeks was quite evident on his face.

“Listen to your lover, Draco. He’s not wrong. I am, however, getting late to drop Luna off and will have to take your leave.” An artful curtsey punctuated the end of her sentence. 

“Bye Pansy, Luna.” Harry courteously nodded before stroking Draco’s arm. If he thought about, Harry was glad that  _ these _ were the silly little things Draco got angry about. It only helped Harry solidify his opinion of Draco, one that didn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.

“Oh, stop that. You loved the drink, it was only seven pounds. We’ll give them some wonderful drinks next time and win, alright?” At Harry’s proposition, Draco could only nod and find a way to make himself more comfortable on Harry’s shoulder. If these were the things Harry had to do to coax Draco, he’d happily do all of them. Once they were both done with their drinks, Harry and Draco walked out and caught a taxi.

“Feels like deja vu, doesn’t it?” Draco commented, all of a sudden. His eyes focusing on the road rather than on Harry when asking the question.

“It certainly does. Unfortunately this time, we’ll have to part ways sooner.” At this, all Harry was met with was a quiet ‘hmm, yeah.’ Something was not right with him, Harry didn’t know what. 

And so, decided to ask, “Draco? Is everything okay?”

Harry was met with a long sigh, and a question he didn’t think he would have had to answer until much later.

“Are you hiding anything from me?”

“Draco, where is this coming from?” Harry hoped that his evasion went unnoticed but of course, luck was once again not in his favour. 

Waiting until the driver completed his u-turn, Draco exhaled deeply, “it’s just, everything is going so swimmingly but I can’t convince this voice in my gut that tells me there’s a big ball about to drop. I just don’t want to be caught off guard hence my earlier question. Are you lying to me Harry?”

If it were any brighter, Draco would have been able to see the sweat trickle down Harry’s forehead. “I mean we all have skeletons in our closet, I’m sure you do too. I have faith that they are skeletons we can defeat and put up as Halloween decorations. I need you to trust me,” Harry held Draco’s hands in his own, before he continued with what he had to say next, “There’s  _ nothing _ I am not telling you, that I know we can’t get through. I believe in that, I hope you do too.” 

Draco wiped his nose with a tissue he carried in his pocket, sniffling and smiling. “Of course, what was I thinking? You’d never keep something giant from me, you wouldn’t be able to!” Draco laughed to himself as he said that.

‘Don’t count on it,’ Harry thought. This just made everything a few hundred times more difficult. How was he to keep this from Draco now? When would ever be the right time to tell him? Especially when Harry would need to put some protection spells on his house, how would he explain any of it to Draco? He needed to get home and hope that Ron and Hermione were still awake. Setting into a panic mode is exactly what he has been practicing  _ not _ to do anymore. Oh this was going to end up in a permanent migraine, that was for sure.

There was one secret Harry could tell that would most likely keep Draco from asking more questions and still make him feel comforted as well.

“There is one thing I haven’t told you that is a little big,” Draco automatically sat up straight at Harry’s statement.

“Oh? And, what is that?”

“I lived with my aunt and uncle until I was eleven because my parents were killed in a car crash when I was a baby, it’s how I got the faint scar on my forehead, it wasn’t from playing football,” Harry didn’t think he would be able to tell Draco exactly how his parents died until Draco knew he was a Wizard and who knows when that would be happening. Draco appeared speechless at first, before pulling Harry into a tight hug. The two embraced each other like it was the last hug they would be part of. In some ways, Harry felt that he was able to convey how he felt with Draco through hugs a lot better than kisses. 

No matter what way Harry spun his parents' death, it always made him emotional because at the end of the story, his parents still died. Whenever Harry thought about what it would feel like once Voldemort was defeated, he never thought that even after seven years of vengeance, he would feel this empty inside. Draco was slowly bringing Harry’s heart out of the darkness and he didn’t even know it. 

In his ears, Draco whispered, “May I tell you something I think could help?” Harry nodded into Draco’s neck, unable to say much more than than.

“When you feel no one knows just what you're going through, when your insides feel much colder than snow, don't worry, darling, 'cause I'm here with you, don’t worry, darling, the sun will shine through,” Draco’s voice sung softly near Harry’s ear and without any warning, Harry started shaking. His body and hands shivered as his lips quivered while salty tears rolled down his cheeks. He cried in the way he did once he found out that the war was over. It was one of those times where it felt like the crying was never going to stop, that no matter what he did all his body would forever be able to do was shake and dispose of salty water from his eyes. Even then, Draco’s hugs grew tighter by the second and Harry would do anything to let Draco know how important he was to him, how not asking him any questions was the best thing that Draco could have ever done. 

The taxi pulled to a soft stop, originally Draco was going to go to his house in this taxi itself but decided that being with Harry was where his attention was most needed right now. Once he had paid the man, Draco and Harry got out of the taxi by tightly hugging each other, refusing to let the other go. Soon enough, the two were able to shuffle their way on to the steps of the stairs that led to the entrance of Harry’s building. The cold, nippy weather blew past the two of them as they sat on the stairs and if it were any other day or situation, Harry’s teeth would have chattered. Today, however, all he could feel was the warmth of Draco’s arms on the outside, the faint burn of alcohol at the bottom of his throat, and the warm tears that fell on his face. 

“I’m here for as long as you need. I’ve got you.” Draco whispered, trying to comfort Harry. After a few beats of crying, Harry started feeling exhausted, his heart heavy from all of what he felt. Maybe one day he would tell Draco everything, maybe that day Draco would leave never to see him again, but right now, he was there for Harry in the way no one else ever could have been. For everyone his life knew everything about and only knew to comfort him by saying, ‘well, you’ve had it worse. Your life is amazing right now!’ Sometimes, the words would be different but the meaning didn’t change. Draco didn’t have context of why he was being this way and yet, he didn’t ask why he was crying so much or tried to fix how Harry was feeling. Draco was giving him the space to let out all that he was feeling, no questions asked. Even Harry knew that he would be fine eventually, that’s what the rational part of his brain was trying to tell him. 

When only the sniffles remained, Harry gently pulled away from Draco, trying his best to look him directly in the eye without feeling wholly embarrassed as he wiped his face clear of any tears left.

Harry kissed Draco’s cheek and softly whispered, “Thank you,” only able to express his gratitude in those two words. 

“Of course, you’ll tell me when you’re ready. If it helps, there were many days before I met you where I cried like that too. Sometimes Pansy was there, a lot of times she couldn’t be. But she always let me know something I never learnt from my parents, ‘there is never a bad reason to cry.’ Took me a few years, but I finally understood what she meant.” The vulnerability in Draco’s voice wasn’t just evident in his voice, it  _ screamed _ in Harry’s ears, and Harry knew, there would never be a day in which he didn’t want to know every detail of every story Draco ever had. 

“What’s the last thing you cried about?” Harry asked, anything to steer the conversation away from himself. 

Draco smiled like he was about to go into a story, “Last week, on what would have been our second anniversary if my ex hadn’t been an absolute bastard. I was crying because I didn’t think I would never find someone again. Turns out, the universe was simply having a bit of fun before giving me the best thing in my life.” Harry could only stare at Draco in shock as Draco stroked his face, with a look that an outsider might have thought was admiration but Harry knew was something more. He just couldn’t understand what.

“The universe does love games,” was all Harry had in him to say. The sky turned darker by the minute, making the stars and moon shine brighter with each passing minute. Harry realised that he would have to leave, practice the exercises he learnt at therapy and for that would have to leave soon. He couldn’t go to Elena next week with a lapse in judgement, it had been so long since he was clean and Harry would be darned if he broke his streak. 

“It sure does. Are you feeling any better?” Draco asked, trying to steer the conversation back. 

“I am,” and he wasn’t lying this time. “But I also have to go, I would gladly stay longer with you but I think I’ll need a few hours to myself before we all meet at Ikea tomorrow morning anyway.” Harry felt how disappointed Draco looked and knew that the only way he could make it up to him for now would have to be by giving him a million kisses.

Harry softly caressed Draco’s face for the second time that evening, pulling him into a soft kiss. His hand on the nape of Draco’s neck, feeling the warmth beneath his hands before he felt the warmth of Draco’s tongue asking for control. Willingly, Harry melted into his mouth as he played with Draco’s hair, unable to pull away from what Draco was doing to his insides, his heart,  _ to Harry _ . 

However, Harry didn’t have to pull away, for it was Draco who did so first. Before Harry could leave, he kissed Draco a hundred times over, leaving no spot on his neck or face untouched by his lips. Each kiss sent with a whisper of ‘thank you’ or ‘you’re amazing’ and by the end, Harry had Draco in a fit of giggles. Harry gave one last kiss, this time on the lips and with a silent scream of ‘I love you’ and went up the stairs into the comfort of his empty home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh we're almost at the end!


	8. A Million Moments

As the week followed, multiple things happened at once. The six of them finally broke ground on Harry’s home by causing absolute chaos in Ikea, so much so that for a few minutes, Harry hoped he wouldn’t get the job so that he wouldn’t have to see any of the employees ever again.

_ “Look, Hermione! They have so many stuffed animals here. My name is Ben, what’s yours?” Ron imitated, as he held the penguin in front of his face. _

_ “Ron, quit it! Unless you want to get into a fight with… Charlie the mighty dragon!” Hermione played along, Harry wouldn’t have been surprised if one of the employees kicked them out, he probably would have said thank you.  _

_ “Bring it on Charlie! I have secret weapons you’ve never even heard of! Huzza!” And so began the mighty fight of Charlie the dragon and Ben the penguin.  _

_ On the other side of the aisle, Draco and Pansy were having their own type of mighty fight. It was something about sofa colours. Harry was in the middle of people not caring at all and people caring too much. Thankfully he had the last approval one everything that went into his home and so decided to solve Draco’s and Pansy’s argument first.  _

_ “Draco! A dark sofa on a light floorboard would not look as nice as a light colour on a floorboard like Harry’s!” Pansy shouted with passion. Sofas were another part of interior design that she seemed to care about so much, strangely enough it was one Draco felt similar about.  _

_ “Pansy, this is the perfect colour for the  _ **_walls_ ** _! Who cares about the floor when most of it will be covered in furniture or a carpet anyway?!” Draco cried out. Harry decided he was putting an end to all this hubbub this instant. _

_ “Both of you! It’s just a couch! What colours are you even fighting on?”  _

_ “Charcoal,” Draco muttered. _

_ “Eggshell white,” Pansy followed.  _

_ “Hm. Did you two pick this crepe pink colour?” It was the only colour that caught Harry’s attention. Charcoal was liable to fade over time and any shade of white got easily damaged.  _

_ “No, that was the last thing we agreed on. It’ll wash out your flooring and getting matching carpets won’t be easy.” Pansy said, and Harry knew that would be the one he was buying. _

_ “Perfect, that’s what we’ll be buying then. And I don’t think it’ll wash out the wooden flooring.” If anything of the sort were to happen, Harry was sure there were some furniture spells he could learn. Or really, have Hermione help.  _

That day had certainly been an eventful one, especially with the large bill he had to go home with. Once they had decided on the big, important furniture and other items such as Harry’s bed, the matching sofas, kitchen utensils, plates, a mirror with gold trimming that Pansy convinced him into buying and multiple glasses which draco convinced him to buy because according to him ‘you now have more than 3 friends, Harry and I do too, so you need a full set.” Harry was just glad that he could have it all delivered to his house since he certainly couldn’t carry it in his shoulder bag, at least not when there were hundreds of Muggles around him. 

The next morning, Pansy buzzed the intercom repeatedly that Harry assumed it was his alarm clock not willing to snooze that morning. Once Harry had let her into the building and his apartment, she laid down five giant paint cans which she had brought over in a vertical cart. Setting them down, she quickly called Luna and Draco for help since Ron and Hermione would only be free in the late afternoon. 

“Go wash up, today is going to be a busy day.” Pansy instructed, Harry was barely able to register what she was saying. 

“It’s only ten in the morning, Pans. Why are we doing this so early?” Harry asked, as he rubbed his eyes to wake himself up.

“ _ ONLY TEN _ ? Harry! Half the world is awake before you are, and I really don’t want you to sit in an empty house for much longer, so yes we’re doing this early and we’re going to finish early. Now. Go. Wash. Up.” Pansy clearly meant business and Harry didn’t have the energy to defend his sleeping patterns before he drank his coffee. 

He looked at himself in the bathroom mirror, as he brushed his teeth, almost unable to recognise the man before him. There was a light in his eyes and laugh lines across his mouth, the five o’clock shadow slowly making its way around his face. On any other day, he would have shaved it away but for some reason, he decided to keep it today. Harry was curious to see what he looked like with a beard, maybe it was the kind of small, physical change he needed to see how much he had grown over the course of a few months. Possibly not in every aspect, but in some ways, Harry knew that his younger self would be proud of the man he had become. 

Ten minutes later, Harry had a cup of coffee inside his system but his sleep remained. So, he yawned through the instructions Pansy had given him as to how he had to paint the room, which direction and on which parts of the room. Soon, beginning the work he had put off for so long now, not understanding how surreal it all felt, how close to the end of this he was. 

An hour and a half in, Harry’s arms were covered in dried paint and Pansy’s hair had white stripes from the few times Harry “accidentally” splattered paint primer about while he swished the brush over the walls. Draco and Luna had just arrived and so had at least some of their work cut out for them. Continuing her reign of monarchy, Pansy instructed Draco and Luna to work on the kitchen cabinets so that Harry wouldn’t get distracted by them. 

The day had gone by so quickly Harry hadn’t even realised the sun setting until he looked down at the paint can and saw the colour change from a glimmering emerald green to a dark, almost black green. He could hear the laughter from the kitchen filling his house, his heart swelling at the sound as his back cried in pain when he tried reaching the corners of the wall that even his extendable ladder wasn’t able to reach anymore. 

Harry got off the ladder and decided he was done for the day. He stood at the entrance of the kitchen in shock, gone as the dusty wooden island and dirty kitchen cabinets. Instead what stood in front of him was a yellow kitchen almost as bright as the people that stood within it. The cabinets were a mustard yellow while the countertops almost gleamed because of the finishing coat Draco had put on it, his kitchen island no more looked like a square dumping ground for anything kitchen related. A few dark brown stools were placed around the island as a single lamp shade dropped from the ceiling splashing light in that specific area of the kitchen. He didn’t realise how much work had gone into a single room in a few short hours. 

“Harry!” Everyone chortled, genuinely happy to see him finally away from the green wall.

Smiling brightly, he walked in and locked eyes with Draco, “Did you do all of this?”

“Luna helped more than I can say.” Draco replied, while Luna scoffed.

“Draco’s lying. All I did was paint some of the cabinets. He hung the lampshade, changed every bulbs and buffed up the countertops.” Luna complimented as Draco blushed profusely, illustrating how she was likely telling the truth. 

Harry quickly walked to the corner of where Draco stood and kissed him intently while everyone else groaned in chorus. “You’re amazing, do you know that?” Harry said, only able to express awe for the man.

“I do,” Draco smugly replied, as he relaxed his shoulders and held Harry by the waist.

“Alright, it’s been a long day, does anyone want any food?” Harry asked the room, and received shouts of agreement.

“We would love some but we may leave soon!” Hermione said.

“That’s fine as long as you two are coming and not leaving us with no warning like the other day,” Pansy wisely commented.

With that the day had ended for them and the night was just beginning. Harry never realised what he was missing out on when he was with Ginny, could never put his finger on it but today, he knew. It was the presence and stories of people outside their little bubble. It was one they had all been in far too long, but with the arrival of Draco and Pansy, Harry could tell that was soon changing. 

It was four days after that night, and each of them had grown closer in new ways. Ron and Draco had their daily chess match which always started and ended in the same way.

_ “I’m beating you this time, Weasley.” Draco would say with pure fire in his eyes. _

_ “Try your luck, Malfoy. We both know the day you win isn’t coming any time soon.” Ron would reply with boredom until they were halfway through the game and Ron’s fire returned until the very last move was made and he was able to confidently boast, “beat you again, Malfoy.” _

_ “Same time tomorrow?” Draco would challenge, enticing a laugh from Ron and an optimistic, “You know it.” _

Luna, Pansy and Hermione discussed their love for truthful and powerful fiction, occasionally their love for women and alcohol. Every conversation started with a popular female author, that’s how Harry knew what was coming and usually dashed off to the kitchen or to paint a wall that needed to be finished on the other side of the room. Occasionally they got into the meat of it pretty early in the conversation. Pansy was usually the cause of it 

_ “So, Hermione when did you know you might like girls too? Before or after you got married Ron?” Pansy asked as she swirled the wine in her glass, waiting for a response. _

_ “It was shortly before, I remember. During my last year at school actually. We were all getting much closer than we were previously and had a party. I was dared to kiss the prettiest girl in the room and naturally chose Luna.” At that Luna shyly smiled, tugging a piece of hair behind her ear. “I didn’t know how I felt immediately of course, just that I liked it and wouldn’t mind doing it again if I was dared to. Ron was my first love and when I realised that I seemed to like women as much as I liked men, I told him. He stood by me and I knew that no matter what, I wouldn’t give up on a man like that. Women are  _ **_quite_ ** _ lovely, though.” _

_ “I’ll drink to that. It’s a lovely story you’ve got there Hermione.” Pansy cheered as the three clinked their glasses together. _

This had been the conversation they had only a few hours, and ever since have been inseparable. Harry could see that bringing more people into their lives didn’t just make his life better, but theirs too. And he was so happy about it. 

Within those four days, the kitchen and living room was properly finished and all that was left was Harry’s room as well as the unpacking of Harry’s items for the study. Since it was all painted and the biggest job - which was the bookshelf - was already built, courtesy of Ron and some secret wand work. It was after sundown when Harry’s room was finished. Everyone collectively built his bed and pushed it against the wall, unwrapping the mattress from the plastic packaging and dropping it with a thud on Harry’s new bed. 

Draco was the first one to scream, “AH,  _ finally _ !” Before everyone unanimously clapped, cheered and fell on the bed. Exhausted and tired from working day and night to get this done under a week had scrambled everyone’s schedules. Ron and Hermione weren’t able to spend too much time with Rose as she was either in daycare or being babysat, Luna had shifted to taking early morning shifts at her salon except for the two vacation days she had taken in the middle of the week. With Draco having to start work up again in a few days, he needed to make up a lot of the work since he didn’t expect his life to go topsy-turvy in the first two weeks he decided to take a vacation after two years. Pansy too, had to reschedule all the meetings she had for this week to the next. Harry had yet to receive an answer from Ikea but since tomorrow was the last day of the week, he had hopes that an answer would be waiting in his mail tomorrow. 

“Thank you to each of you for helping me with this, I could have never done it without you all. I don’t think I have ever loved a place I lived in, this much. And I just realised something! Since Pansy decided to make the colour of  _ my _ room this, slate blue colour, we officially have one room for each of our house colours!” Harry excitedly announced. Now he  _ knew _ , he could never love another house as much as he loved this one. 

“Oh, you’re right, Harry! Are you sure you didn’t do this purposely?” Ron questioned.

“Ron, I  _ wish _ I did this purposely. You can thank Pansy for all this, she’s the brains behind the operation,” Harry praised, everyone knew it too.

“And the driver, darlin.’” Pansy proudly added.

“Then we’ll just have to have our reunion party here, Harry! It would be a wasted opportunity if we didn’t.” Luna was right, it would have been the  _ perfect _ place, it was big enough to host one but not so big that the party would have gotten out of hand. McGonagall would finally agree to come to one of their reunions!

Harry agreed, “Luna, you’re absolutely right! When is it again?” 

  
  


“This time, during the winter hols, I think. Since it was the only time everyone was available.” Hermione answered.

“Perfect, we’ll tell everyone soon then. But now, would everyone like to join me for some celebratory drinks? It’s a long holiday and we  _ need _ it.” Everyone cheered for the second time that evening, quickly getting up and putting on their coats and scarves.

It was only when everyone was out of the house, waiting for Harry to lock the door that he realised what a great feat he was able to achieve with the help of others. How beautiful his home looked now that there was paint on the walls, warm rugs on the floor and the echo of laughter to fill up the corners of the place that now, meant the most to him.

Harry’s night with his friends and relationship with Draco, was only just beginning. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHH we've reached the end! I have so many ideas for where this fic goes as it is the first one I've written that's THIS LONG. Maybe I'll do a part 2 one day. Who knows? 
> 
> I hope you loved reading this as much as I did writing it. Tell me your thoughts! What did you think of Harry and Draco's relationship? What was your favourite part or line? If there was a part two, what would you want to be in it?
> 
> Have a good one dearies! Stay safe and if you have that idea picking at the back of your brain, I urge you! Please write it! There is never enough (fan) fiction, and I promise you, it'll be one of the most rewarding things you could ever do. trust me, I know <3
> 
> if you liked this work and would like to see what I'm working on next, follow me on Tumblr as my @ is im-kaifused for more updates and many many reblogs :D <3

**Author's Note:**

> 🌻 This work is part of Fluff Fest, a Harry Potter-centered fest dedicated to fluffy themes, meet cutes and wholesome vibes.
> 
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